WA seniors smash World Record
The unofficial Seniors Outdoor Fitness World Record was recently smashed when nearly 150 older people descended on Elizabeth Quay for a half hour of exercise as part of the inaugural official launch of International Pay It Forward day in Perth.
147 participants smashed the unofficial Seniors Outdoor Fitness World Record in Perth recently.
The previous unofficial record of 52 people was made on Sydney’s northern beaches in June 2014.
Organised by People Who Care, a Western Australian charity which provides a variety of services to seniors, the event was created to coincide with Pay it Forward Day, held on the last Thursday of April.
“Pay It Forward is how we are as an organisation through volunteers working with many people,” explains People Who Care chief executive officer Mrs Alison White.
“We came up with the idea of this event to bring people together, and to raise awareness about the day and the benefits of senior fitness.”
Local aged care providers and organisations helped transport many participants to Elizabeth Quay, who were then put through their paces in a fitness routine devised by professional trainers from Mind Over Matter Health and Fitness. “Two members of the Wild Cats basketball team led the exercises which involved walks on the spot, punches in the air and gentle lunges,” says Ms White.
The variety of exercises enabled people of all abilities to be involved, including those in wheelchairs and with pushers.
“There was a lady in the front row with a walking stick doing some marvellous stuff and even the St John’s first aiders joined in,” says Mrs White. “This was a free event with organisations and people paying it forward through donating their time and entertainment. Seniors participating in the world record attempt paid it forward through a $1 donation which went towards our community programs. It was just a lovely event; everyone was laughing.”
The oldest participant was 92, and the final count for participants was 147, making it a new unofficial world record.
Pay It Forward day is a concept articulated by Catherine Ryan Hyde from her book of the same title. To Pay It Forward you just need to act in a selfless way and show that you care for those around you by an act of charity, whether it be a stranger, a friend or someone who may just need some support from someone in the community they live in.
