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Poll: Obesity hits more boomers than others in US

Saturday, August 6, 2011 By GARY PULEO Times Herald Staff

LOWER PROVIDENCE Theyre known collectively as the baby boom generation. But the more than 76 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 have a lot more in common than their ages. They share an ever-escalating number on the bathroom scale as well. According to an AP survey, most boomers are more overweight than their parents were. Most of them report getting some aerobic exercise a few times a week, but 37 percent of those polled never pick up a dumbbell or engage in any strength training. One prominent local baby boomer, Joe Dunbar, 54, admitted he was finally stirred into action on the fitness front by a member of an older generation. My father is 87 years old, and when he was 80 he gave me his mountain bike and said, Joe, I think you need more exercise than me at this point. That was a bit of an eye opener, said the Lower Providence Township manager, laughing. Heres an 80-year-old man saying you need a more active lifestyle. Unfortunately, a medical condition is preventing Charlie Dunbar, now living in Drexel Hill with his wife Clare, 83, from riding these days. But his son took his advice to heart. Im not an avid rider but try to ride the bike occasionally and exercise when I can, walk when I can, Joe Dunbar said. I guess my biggest excuse is Im so involved with work and dont take as much time as I should for a healthy lifestyle. We have these weight loss challenges at work and I finished seventh out of eight co-workers. Hes just not a gym kind of guy, Dunbar confessed. I tried the gym and I guess my excuse is I go to a local gym and there are too many distractions, inquiries from residents and things, that I cant accomplish what I set out to. But if I want to reach my fathers old age of 87 I need to change my lifestyle and watch my portions. Im not a coffee drinker; my biggest weakness is diet soda, and my daughter, Kelly, who is 18, said dad, if you stop drinking diet soda youll lose five pounds in a week. So now Im getting lectured by an 18-year-old. Dunbar admitted he didnt even know he qualified as a baby boomer. With three older brothers the oldest will be 60 in October I look at them as the old guys, he said. Maybe its just a mindset. I started getting the mailings from AARP at 49 and thought, this is interesting, but its not for me yet and filed it away in

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Poll: Obesity hits more boomers than others in US - The Times He...

http://timesherald.com/articles/2011/08/06/news/doc4e3da28e336...

the desk drawer. Worcester native Cyndy Drue has long contemplated the particulars of being branded a baby boomer, though the thin radio personality was a bit surprised to know her fellow boomers are supposedly more obese than their parents. Not sure what to say about that, except that this country definitely has an overweight problem in general, she said. Yes, I am very aware that Im part of the baby boomers, albeit on the younger end. I think our generation is trying our hardest to hold onto looking good and being physically fit. There is more technology now on ways to stay young looking, and it is also more out in the open. In my parents time, if someone got plastic surgery, it would not be discussed the way our generation talks about work that we get. Cigarette smoking was practically a required pastime in the days when her parents were young, she mused. My parents generation smoked cigarettes and drank more carelessly probably because they didnt know the dangers. Many women smoked and drank while pregnant, for example, and our generation I think women were much more conscientious about harming their unborn child, and they purposely gave up smoking and drinking while pregnant. Nowadays, the focus on exercise is far more intensive, Drue said. Theres a lot more attention on working out. We have gyms, classes, and more sporting options. I think my parents pretty much stuck with the traditional means of exercise: playing tennis or golf. They didnt join gyms and schedule time to work out. Bill McManus of Chester County agreed. My parents were active skiers and tennis players, said McManus, whose parents live in Pittsburgh. Dad played golf as well. We often took trips to the ski resorts and played paddle at the club. Today I am lucky to find time to work out, either on my equipment or somebody elses. I have to work harder at it now, more so than when I was younger. I guess the body metabolism slows and the inspiration sometimes gets buried underneath the responsibility of a boomers life these days. Like many baby boomers, McManus sometimes yearns for a simpler time. My parents worked hard to build their life. They made it a priority to expose their kids to productive environments so that my sisters and I would mix with successful people and pathways. For that I am grateful. That gave us a head start. I dont see parents today trying as hard to do that for some reason. I constantly hear from my boomer peers that kids today want it too easy. That they arent willing to do the work necessary to earn their rewards. They have a sense of entitlement just because they are here and I agree. I just turned 50 last year, he added. I am not sure exactly what the term boomer really means to me since I never felt the need to ponder it. Most of the time I am just chugging along with my life feeling the same as I ever was. I dont feel too much different except my eyes squint more, my joints are a little less agile. My belly seems to always want to grow. My hair has decided to leave and my cheeks want to wrinkle without permission. I cant seem to fathom why I am constantly checking for obtrusive gray hairs these days. Why cant they just stay black? Other than that, I am fine. Gary Puleo can be reached at 610-272-2500, ext. 205, or gpuleo@timesherald.com.

URL: http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2011/08/06/news/doc4e3da28e336f7932565648.prt

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