Fitness Activities of the 45-plus Boomers

Marie Dubois is in love with kayaking. For a few years, the waters and wildlife near her home in northeast Florida offered brief escapes from her work as a real-estate agent.

Today, the 53-year-old "nature lover-advocate-proponent," as Ms. Dubois describes herself, runs Easy Going Kayak Tours, a company she started in 2007. Still small (she and a friend are the only employees) and still a struggle (a rainy morning can mean canceled trips and lost wages), the business nonetheless allows her to spend her days doing what she's crazy about: paddling through unspoiled settings with others.

"I love showing people how enjoyable nature can be," she says. "The whole experience just clicks with me."

Looking back on her decision to start down a new path, Ms. Dubois says she had several advantages: low cost of entry (two kayaks, paddles and life vests cost under $500), little competition (unlike the real-estate business, "one out of every four people here isn't running kayak tours," she says) and, most important, a passion for her work.

"You have to go after something you love," she says. "Success will follow."

"Tracking the Fitness Movement–2009," a recent study from the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association takes a snapshot of fitness activities among the 45-plus crowd.  the group found that older adults "continue to drive the fitness movement, swelling the membership rolls of health clubs and purchasing billions of dollars worth of home exercise equipment."

The reasons: Baby Boomers, in particular, according to the report, "are strongly motivated by both vanity and health to continue to exercise as they grow older."  All of which raises the questions:  How often do you exercise?  And what's your activity of choice? 

In 1987, only 9% of all health club members were 55-plus but in 2008 that share increased to 24%.  The percentage of individuals, by age, who said they are physically active on a daily basis for at least 30 minutes:

45 to 54 = 50%

55 to 64 = 49%

65-plus = 53%

Source: The Wall Street Journal, May 15, 2010

Come and visit the Blogging Boomer Carnival hosted this week by Anne Maxfield of It's All About Aging.  You will enjoy what you discover Baby Boomers are about today..including their life challenges!