Healthy Horizons: A Lost Generation

Jan 1, 2000 12:00 PM, Linda Formichelli

By the time you finish reading this article, a few more Americans will have moved into their senior years. In fact, over the next 10 years, the 60-to- 64 population will increase by 58 percent - and for the first time ever, the older population will soon outnumber the younger population. So why aren't you seeing more of these older adults in your club?

In past issues of Club Industry, we discussed why older adults are an important market and how to cater to this growing group. This time, we'll tell you about the unlikely competitors that are drawing older adults away from traditional fitness clubs - and what you can do about it.

Your newest competitor may not be that slick fitness facility down the block. Hospitals, senior centers, universities, clubs specializing in the deconditioned, and even park and recreation departments are getting in on the act and offering fitness programs to older adults. The reason? Senior centers, hospitals, universities and parks that show an interest in seniors' quality of life enjoy community goodwill in addition to increased income - while clubs that specialize in deconditioned adults understand that their unique positioning will help them stand out in the marketplace.

What do these programs have that make them popular with sen-iors? For one thing, they offer a thong-free, welcoming atmosphere where older adults can get fit with their peers. Impor-tant elements of this atmosphere include:

* Appropriate equipment. Most strength equipment offers 10-pound increments, which can be too much for older adults.

* Appropriate music. "They don't have to play Glen Miller, but they do have to be aware of the music mix," advises Kay van Norman, founder of SENioRS Unlimited in Bozeman, Mont., a consulting firm specializing in exercise and wellness programming for older adults.

* No mirrors. "My dad always tells me he feels great until he walks by a mirror," says Glenn Colarossi, president of AgeFit in Stamford, Conn., which manages 14 assisted and independent living facilities for the aged. "Older adults are not particularly interested in seeing themselves."

Qualified instructors are another reason older adults are drawn to alternative fitness facilities. Programs catering to older adults boast staff who are trained not only in basic fitness, but also in the biology of aging and in how to deal with such issues as incontinence, alcoholism and depression. In addition, facilities that specialize in the deconditioned are often owned by nurses and other medical practitioners, which boosts credibility.

"In the case of the specialized clubs, you're talking about that personalized service - the removal of the fear of injury because you'll have someone who's watching over what you're doing," says van Norman. And the availability of a highly trained medical staff makes hospital-based programs attractive to this market.

Finally, older adults are eschewing fitness clubs because they feel they don't belong. "A reason clubs are at a disadvantage right now is the attitude that's reflected in the marketing," says van Norman. "If you look at the typical fitness club ad, it in no way speaks to older adults or people who are out of shape." As an example, she cites an ad that featured an obese woman on the beach with the caption, "Are you ready for swimsuit season?"

"That's the prevailing attitude of a lot of fitness clubs: Come here to avoid being this fat, horrible thing," says van Norman. "Older adults would look at that and think, 'Gee, they sure don't want me.' The image that fitness clubs are for the body-beautiful set puts fitness clubs at a disadvantage."

To create advertising that attracts older adults, clubs have to realize that it isn't ripped abs that this market is after, but independence, quality of life and the social experience. "Seniors are more interested in the quality of their lives than losing a lot of weight or running marathons," says Ronda Gates, who teaches and creates programs for the parks and recreation department as the owner of LIFESTYLES by Ronda Gates in Lake Oswego, Ore.

"Exercise and eating healthfully allow people to get to their 70s, 80s and 90s," she continues. "But once they get there, they're pretty much set in their patterns, and what improves the quality of their lives and what they look for is relationships, support and the knowledge that they're making a contribution." These elements should be worked into any advertising targeted to the older adult market.

By now you may be wondering why we haven't mentioned the most obvious competitors in the race for the senior market: assisted living facilities and retirement homes. Says van Norman, "I don't think assisted living facilities compete at all with fitness clubs. It's a completely different situation where you have people living on-site. Regardless of what wonderful fitness plans the club has to offer, it's unlikely that residents would go off-site to take those classes."

In addition, many retirement housing facilities, assisted living facilities and so on don't offer fitness programs - or competition to the club industry - because they don't have the time, the room or the money to install equipment and train staff, according to van Norman. "They know that they need it, but what happens is that the activity director ends up being the one who has to manage it," she says. "Without the proper training and resources, it's just one more thing on their plate - and they're totally overworked anyway."

However, this doesn't mean that fitness clubs have a clear field with the retirement housing market. Even though their facilities don't offer fitness programs, residents may not be able to join your club due to transportation troubles or other reasons.

The solution: Join forces with senior housing facilities - and boost your bottom line in the process. "Now is the time to do it!" says Jan Montague of Montague, Eippert and Associates Highland Heights, Ky., which designs, develops and implements wellness programming, models and philosophies for the retirement housing industry. "Everyone is moving to collaboration and shared risk. The entry point right now needs to be changing culture; we have a whole group of people living in assisted and independent living, and physical fitness is not part of their culture."

Clubs have several options when it comes to collaborating with senior housing facilities. One idea is to offer to run a program at their facility. This doesn't mean that you can just send your least-busy trainer over and hope for the best, however. "Very few trainers have the necessary education background and experience," says Montague. To handle the myriad of chronic conditions they're sure to encounter, she suggests that trainers need to study pharmacology and the biology of aging in addition to holding a degree in exercise science.

Another way to align yourself with retirement facilities is to offer their members lower rates to use your club during certain (slow) hours. In this case, the club or the housing facility must provide transportation.

Don't let the additional costs of training or transportation scare you away from approaching retirement facilities. "There are grants available with area agencies on aging for offering wellness programs at senior centers," suggests Montague. "Senior centers going after grants would have to demonstrate who would be able to provide that service. They'd just write it into the grant that services will be provided by XYZ Fitness." If you can convince your local senior housing facility to apply for a fitness grant, you'll be first in line when it comes time to develop and implement a program.

Joining up with housing facilities is more than a way to attract older adults - it's a way to entice younger members. "If clubs can develop the program, not only is it reaching the older market and collecting a management fee," says Colarossi, "but the children of the people who are staying at these homes visit and see that a local club is providing the services - and that's a marketing avenue for reaching the children as well."

With the shift to an older marketplace and new competitors taking a bite out of fitness clubs' bottom lines, it's important to remember one key thing: "Fifty-five percent of discretionary spending and 80 percent of the personal wealth are in the hands of the aging market," says Colin Milner, COO of the Keiser Institute on Aging. "With this said it makes no sense that with such a lucrative market, only 5 percent of the marketing dollar in the U.S. is spent on this market. As a matter of fact, this market last year spent more over the Internet than all other markets combined - not what you would have expected to hear, is it?"