Let the Games Begin
Competitiveness doesn’t fade just because you’re retired. If anything, there’s more time and plenty of benefits to finding outlets to compete and stay in shape. Take a look at a few of these sites and you’ll see that you’re not the only boomer who isn’t ready to let go of that spirit of competition.
The National Senior Games Association “Promoting healthy lifestyles for adult through education, fitness and sport.” This national event, held every other year, is for those motivated to achieve greater value and quality in their lives by staying healthy, active and fit. Athletes qualify for the national competition by excelling at their state games. Visit the national senior games website at http://www.nsga.com to learn more or to link to information on Illinois’ senior state games.
The 2007 Illinois Senior Olympics. As many as 1,000 male and female athletes compete in thirty different sports and categories at the Illinois Senior Olympics held in Springfield. Athletes who take the top spots can qualify for a national event held every other year. When it becomes available, registration information is posted at the organization’s website, http://www.ilsenoly.org Photographs and results from the previous year are also included.
Are you a runner, or could you be? Are you a runner, or could you be? Area races and fun-runs are listed at several sites including http://runillinois.org
Use these sites to look into running clubs, races, clinics, training ideas, places to run, and even a pace calculator.
Fifty-Plus Lifelong Fitness "is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote an active lifestyle for older people." At their website — http://www.50plus.org — check out the Ambassadors Corps page to learn about their program aimed at enrolling and educating active adults to become catalysts for senior fitness in their community.
The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports is an excellent place to learn what resources are available for people with fitness goals and questions. See the website, http://www.fitness.gov/home_resources.htm