15th Annual National Senior Health & Fitness Day
Set for Wednesday, May 28, 2008
This Year's Theme — “Fitness...A Lifetime Investment! ”

On Wednesday, May 28, 2008, an estimated 150,000 older adults will participate in local fitness activities throughout the country as part of the 15th annual National Senior Health & Fitness Day® (NSHFD), the nation’s largest health promotion event for older adults.

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 1,000 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 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 $39.95 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 at 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 programs for older adults, and to encourage all older adults to take advantage of the many health and fitness programs offered in their communities.”

Last fall, the Mature Market Resource Center sponsored a slogan contest to select a theme for the 2007 National Senior Health & Fitness Day event. The theme for 2008, “Fitness...A Lifetime Investment!”, was chosen from among thousands of contest entries. George L. Wellman from Washington, DC won a $250 prize for his winning entry.

To help older adults stay motivated after National Senior Health & Fitness Day and throughout the year, the Mature Market Resource Center also organizes the Mature Fitness Awards USAsm, the nation’s first fitness recognition program for older adults. Additional information on the Mature Fitness Awards USA can be found on the Internet at www.fitnessday.com.

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