National Senior Health and Fitness Day

On Wednesday, May 30, 2001, an estimated 150,000 older adults will participate in local fitness activities throughout the country as part of the eighth annual National Senior Health & Fitness Day® (NSHFD - http://www.fitnessday.com), the nation's largest annual health and fitness event for older adults, according to the sponsors.

Organized as a public/private good health partnership by the Mature Market Resource Center (MMRC), Senior Health & Fitness Day will offer fitness activities for older adults at more than 1,500 locations including hospitals, park and recreation departments, senior centers, health clubs, retirement communities, houses of worship, health departments, and other community locations. The event is always held on the last Wednesday in May as part of Older Americans Month activities.

This year, programs will range from small group exercise demonstrations in community senior centers to walking tours and outdoor health fairs. Most programs include an exercise or physical activity component, as well as educational information about senior health and fitness.

Interested organizations must register to host a National Senior Health & Fitness event. The registration fee is $36.95 plus shipping and includes the official National Senior Health & Fitness Day program manual and sample National Senior Health & Fitness Day incentive items —
T-shirt, balloons, etc. The program manual is an easy-to-use guide with all of the information needed to host a successful event — activity suggestions, posters, press releases, copyright-free reproducible masters to hand out, etc.

"Older adults in all levels of physical fitness are encouraged to participate in National Senior Health & Fitness Day," says Tina Godin, NSHFD program manager. "Our goals for Senior Day are to make exercise fun, to increase awareness of the benefits of a regular exercise program for older adults, and to encourage all older adults to take advantage of the many health and fitness programs offered in their communities."

To help older adults stay motivated after National Senior Health & Fitness Day and throughout the year, the Mature Market Resource Center also coordinates the Mature Fitness Awards USAsm, the nation's first fitness recognition program for older adults. This unique awards program is open to adults age 50 and over, and recognizes older adult fitness achievements in a wide variety of physical activities such as aerobics, bicycling, group exercise, swimming, and walking. Individuals can earn the award annually.

"With National Senior Health & Fitness Day, Mature Fitness Awards USA and our new Web-based professional group: the National Association of Senior Health Professionals (www.seniorprograms.com), we have become leaders in public/private partnerships for health promotion," says MMRC executive director Patricia Henze. She adds, "These programs are consistent with recent findings listed in the 1996 U.S. Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health — that older adults can obtain significant health benefits with a moderate amount of physical activity."