The Optimal Aging Podcast
Millions of people over age 50 represent the biggest consumer market in history for fitness, nutrition, travel, recreation and more. But most businesses don't know how to market to them. We'll interview entrepreneurs, business leaders and innovators to discuss this exciting opportunity.
The Optimal Aging Podcast
It's Worth Repeating: Keep Talking about Muscle after Age 50 (and 3 Other Timeless Topics)
I was at a little dinner party the other night and the conversation turned to fitness for people over 50. All four of us at the table are in the demo and we’re all healthy and active.
My partner and I are in the fitness industry and I quickly realized that we were discussing things on a different level than our friends, more familiar, in shorthand. It reminded me that the messages about fitness over 50 are still unfamiliar to most people. I think about them so much that I forget that not everyone else does so, as well.
It made me wonder if gym owners and others in health and fitness make the same mistake.
And it reminded me of a podcast episode I recorded a while back about the topic, so I decided to re-publish it this week. It was interesting how the topics circled back — providing a good lesson for me as a communicator and for anyone trying to convince people to get fit after 50. Here it is.
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Prime Fit Content – Engage the over-50 market
Hi everybody and welcome to Optimal Aging, the show about fitness, health and well-being after 50. I'm your host, jay Croft of PrimeFit Content. This week's episode is a little bit different than most, and I will briefly explain what I mean by that, and then we'll get to the good stuff. I was at a little dinner party the other night and the conversation turned to fitness for people over 50 and what I've been writing about lately. And all four of us at the table are in the demo and we're all healthy and active.
Speaker 0:My partner and I are in the fitness industry and I quickly realized that we were discussing things on a different level than are more familiar. In shorthand, you know that way that you do when you're with colleagues from work or other fans of your favorite reality TV show. Right, it just makes sense. My friends are smart, educated men who are in other fields, and I found their questions and points of view refreshing because it reminded me that the messages about fitness over 50 are still unfamiliar to most people. I mean I think about muscle mass and sarcopenia all the time, about how to compel people over 50 to take better care of themselves, and about the ways we can all help each other move more, eat better and enjoy a better quality of life as we age. I think about them so much that I forget that not everyone else does as well, and it made me wonder if gym owners and others in health and fitness make the same mistake. All this reminded me of a podcast episode I recorded a while back about the topic, so I decided to dust it off and republish it this week. It was interesting to me how the topics circled back, providing a good lesson for me as a communicator and for anybody really trying to convince people to get fit after 50. Here it is. Do you ever feel like a broken record when talking about fitness in general or specifically for people over 50, like you're repeating the same messages over and over and wondering doesn't everybody already know about all of this, about strength training and basic nutrition? At least, it's a common suspicion that we have whenever we're communicating repeatedly over time about anything. It makes you wonder if there's a limit, like can I even talk about this thing again? Well, that's what I'll be addressing today on Optimal Aging the show for gym and studio owners who want to grow their businesses by engaging more people over 50.
Speaker 0:One of the mainstays of your marketing approach must be content that your prospects and clients find useful, relevant, motivating or entertaining about the idea of healthy living as they age and how fitness is crucial to that how you can help them have a better life. That's the whole premise behind my business, prime Fit Content, which sends you heaps of premium material to use in your blogs, newsletters and social media every week, and after writing hundreds of articles and interviewing countless gym owners, studio owners, trainers, authors, experts and, most importantly, fitness consumers, I'm convinced that there are four topics that you can never discuss too much, four topics you can never cover too much in your content, four topics that everyone needs to hear about in various ways and through various channels, over and over, no matter where they are in your sales funnel. Knowing this can help you prepare content with confidence. When you have these topics on hand, you'll never be left high and dry for something to discuss with your clients, prospects, community members or even your employees. Here we go.
Speaker 0:Number one we need to talk about muscle. We don't talk about it enough. We need to talk about muscle. We don't talk about it enough. Now, you might feel like you do, but you don't, and neither do I and neither does anyone, not nearly enough to overcome the dearth of understanding out there among older people about muscle, or among even younger adults regarding the role that muscle plays in aging. Now, I'm willing to bet that the vast majority of people over 50 or 60 don't even know that they need muscle, or why or how to get it. And it's up to us to make it clear and compelling, even when it means overcoming that ignorance, even when it means talking to people who have no idea why anyone besides an Olympic bodybuilder or Arnold Schwarzenegger would want muscles, even when it means talking to people whose own doctors have scared them away from lifting anything heavier than a Stephen King hardback. You know all the reasons for this, for the necessity of strength training, but they, by and large, do not, so we have to share content with them time and again. That makes the points about strength training that it's absolutely essential to their physical autonomy and quality of life as they age.
Speaker 0:Muscle does not mean bulging biceps. Muscle means being able to get off the toilet. Do you think most of your prospects and clients know that they're silently losing muscle mass every year as part of the aging process? I promise you most of them do not. You have to tell them over and over again. And then you have to tell them that while sarcopenia might be natural, it is not inevitable or irreversible or in any way acceptable. Without muscle they can't stand up or walk or run, they can't carry in groceries or put the food away, they can't play with their grandkids or travel or really do much of anything else. And the way to make sure that that doesn't happen you know it better than I do, so come on and say it with me is to practice strength training. Sure, they'll also feel better, physically and mentally, they'll get around better, they'll sleep better, they'll have sex better, they'll be far less likely to fall and far less likely to break a bone if they do fall, but more than anything, they'll have the strength that they need to live.
Speaker 0:Topic number two is brain health. You know, just like physical frailty isn't necessarily an inevitable part of aging, neither is reduced brain function, whether it's common forgetfulness or Alzheimer's disease, there's been a lot of research lately about the brain-body link as it relates to brain health and aging. It's all very encouraging and shows that we do have tools to maintain and even improve how our brain works as we age. Here's how WebMD puts it Can exercise prevent memory loss and improve cognitive function? Possibly, exercise has many known benefits for both physical and mental health, including reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, strengthening the bones and muscles and reducing stress. It also appears that regular physical activity benefits the brain. Studies show that people who are physically active are less likely to experience a decline in their mental function and have a lowered risk of of developing Alzheimer's disease. Physical activity is one of the known modifiable risk factors for dementia. Plus, regular exercise helps combat other Alzheimer's disease risk factors such as depression and obesity. That was from WebMD.
Speaker 0:Here's what the UK's Alzheimer's Society says. Of all the lifestyle changes that have been studied, taking regular physical exercise appears to be one of the best things that you can do to reduce your risk of getting dementia. And even this quote leading a physically active lifestyle can have a significant impact on the well-being of people with dementia. End quote. I write about this frequently in Prime Fit content so you could be sharing powerful news and feature articles with your audience about the research and about how it's affecting real people just like them. Now, does all of this mean that a gym membership will automatically protect us from dementia or other brain problems? Of course not. Will automatically protect us from dementia or other brain problems? Of course not, but it is one more powerful tool that you need to have when talking to people of any age about the benefits of physical fitness. There's more information available on this from all kinds of reputable medical sources, including the Alzheimer's Association in the US, and new studios are blossoming to combine physical exercise with mental exercise, because when they're done together, the result is even more powerful.
Speaker 0:Number three protein and sorry hydration. I say sorry because if you're going to urge people to at least get enough water every day, then well, you might be running the risk of beating a dead horse with this one. I know I'm tired of hearing that, but you can and you should go further on the topic of hydration. That way, you're reminding them to you know hydrate, but you're wrapping up a familiar message in new information. For instance, do they know that hydration affects everything from cognitive function to arthritis and joint pain? Do they know the dangers of soda, including, and maybe especially, diet sodas? Do they know they can eat some of their water in fruits and vegetables?
Speaker 0:My point is this is an excellent example of zhuzhing up a tired topic that still needs to be repeated. Hand in hand with this is a newer topic for many older people, and that's the need to get enough protein in their diet. As we age, we tend to eat less than we should and to get less protein when we need it more than ever in order to fight sarcopenia and keep the muscle that we have. With your own approach and with PrimeFit content, you can make sure you're educating your prospects and clients about why they need more protein and how they can incorporate it into their daily routines, like lists of high-protein snacks to always keep handy, and why it can be especially valuable at breakfast. A friend in fitness told me about his father complaining that he isn't recovering from a recent surgery as quickly as he wanted, and my friend said he wanted to say well, dad, how about you have a couple of eggs in the morning? That would be better for you than you know a cup of coffee and have a piece of toast.
Speaker 0:And finally, the number four topic you're not discussing enough in your content and in person is loneliness. Did you know that the US Surgeon General recently declared that we're suffering from an epidemic of loneliness and social isolation, with about one in two adult Americans reporting some form of loneliness, and that was before COVID cut everybody off from their friends and family and support systems. Social isolation is particularly acute for many people as they age, with life partners gone and children moved away and no daily interaction at work. Again, covid brought a lot of this to the forefront and I was really pleased to see so many of my PrimeFit content customers step up for their older clients. During the lockdown they called and checked on them. They had group social events on Zoom in addition to workouts. Some even paid house calls, keeping plenty of social distance but still letting their clients know they were cared for and bringing some much-needed interaction. Research shows that lonely, isolated people have sleep problems, greater inflammation, lower immunity and older people in particular. They're tied to pain, insomnia, depression, anxiety and shorter lifespan, and they can lead all of us to abuse alcohol and drugs.
Speaker 0:Your gym or studio can play a great role in mitigating loneliness for all your members, no matter what their age and whether we're all in the middle of a global catastrophe or not. Small group training, for example, provides peer support, accountability and encouragement. You've seen real, long-term friendships grow at your gym or studio. You've had a hand in helping that happen and you can keep doing it in countless ways. Encourage people to socialize, plan group outings, bring in guest speakers for lunch and learns. Now I know you're not a social worker, but you are committed to helping people lead their best, healthiest lives, and providing vital, life-sustaining social interaction is as important as any training you provide.
Speaker 0:So, to recap, my four topics you can't talk about too much are muscle, brain health, protein and hydration, and social interaction. Keep talking and keep sharing content that keeps making the same vital points over and over. Research shows that humans need to hear the same message at least seven times before it starts to sink in, and you have newcomers to your circle all the time who might never have heard why they should be lifting weights or snacking on peanuts instead of potato chips. I'll keep talking and writing about all of this. I hope you will, too. Thanks for listening. I hope you enjoyed the show and I hope you'll subscribe, tell a friend and write a review. All of that helps us grow our audience. You can learn more about me and my content business at primefitcontentcom. Send me an email at jjay at primefitcontentcom. I'm also on Facebook, linkedin, instagram and just about anywhere else, so check me out. Love to hear from you. Again, thanks for listening. Join us next time.
