"So what if a 2020 study found that 91% of pickleball injuries involved people aged over 50 (You should act your age at least when it comes to exercise. Here's why, 3 November)? Most pickleball players are over 50! I'd rather see active, smiling people with the odd strain than a generation glued to the sofa. The real health crisis isn't overexercising it's inactivity. Fitness is the biggest predictor of long-term health and independence. Ageing is inevitable, but fragility is not."
"Women in particular face an accelerated loss of bone and muscle through menopause, yet 84% of inactive women going through menopause want to be more active and 90% would get active if advised by a professional. There is still a societal acceptance that it is OK to be a fragile older lady behind a Zimmer frame with no bum in her trousers."
Most pickleball players are over 50, so a high share of injuries among that age group reflects participation patterns rather than inherent unsuitability. Being active, even with occasional strains, is preferable to a sedentary lifestyle because inactivity is the greater health threat. Fitness strongly predicts long-term health and independence, and ageing need not mean fragility. Menopause accelerates bone and muscle loss, yet many inactive menopausal women want to increase activity and would do so with professional advice. Societal norms tolerate visible frailty, but supervised strength training and joyful movement function as preventive medicine. Encourage confidence-building activities; injuries can be managed, frailty cannot.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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