4. She’s not the only one in that situation.
I surveyed 42 parents, ages 46 - 65.
7 had high cholesterol
6 had high blood pressure
5 had high cholesterol and blood pressure
4 were overweight
3 had body pains and aches
1 had diabetes
1 had depression
1 had a heart attack in 2006
5. That’s 28 people, 67%, with a health
condition who don’t feel healthy.
Fairly healthy
Very healthy
12% Existing health issues
21%
67%
6. Insight #1:
Medicine is an effective fix for conditions like
high cholesterol. Unfortunately, it becomes a
short-term replacement for changes to diet
and exercise.
7. That’s 28 people, 67%, with a health
condition who don’t feel healthy.
Fairly healthy
Very healthy
12% Existing health issues
21%
67%
8. On average, those 28 people are doing 30
minutes or more of physical activity 2.2 days
a week.
But they’d like to do so 5.6 days a week.
14. Hypothesis:
Older adults are only exploring traditional
types of exercise, like walking, stretching,
and weight lifting.
If we introduce them to activities not seen as
traditional exercise, they are more likely to
exercise more often.
15. Test trial:
I copied messaging for 6 real events on
Meetup.com and asked study participants to
RSVP to ones they would like to attend.
24. YES:
More fun
Exercise, enjoy the scenery and meet new people
I will join if I have the time
It sounds like a good opportunity to meet people
Easy form of non-impact exercise & social
I enjoy walking with other people
I would love to. The more moral support the better.
I like to walk
enjoy scenery
Enjoy walking
easy going none performance based fun
Takeaways:
Would be fun to meet new people and share
moral support. Non-impact exercise. Can
enjoy the scenery.
26. YES:
I love to dance but I don't have a partner so because this class doesn't require to have one is just perfect for me
except I live in Florida
Interested in ball room dancing
Would love to learn to Salsa dance with my wife.
Same reason: great opportunity to have fun and meet people
I can still "cut the rug" or at least think I can.
Love dancing & social
I enjoy dancing and would allow to be with other people.
Invite gave out more info of what to expect.
Love to dance
learn to dance
a chance to exercise while learning to dance.sounds very fun
it sounds fun
Sounds fun
Takeaways:
Love to dance, fun, meet new people.
Would go if significant other went as well.
28. YES:
It's probably a good pace for me.
Enjoy meditation and slower pace and calmer exercise. But if it were too much of an incent burning meditation,
that would turn my interest off.
Interested in Tai Chi.
always wanted to try tai chi
I've tried it before and enjoyed the activity
Have done some tai chi before and again good form of non-impact exercise for body & mind
The type of activity deals with the flow of energy in the body
Good especially if you are just beginning.
I wish it would be in my area.
Learning Tai chi now.
always wanted to learn Tai Chi.
I've never taken a tai chi class and would like to try it.
I like Tai Chi.
Takeaways:
Would enjoy slower pace. Have always
wanted to try. Good for body and mind.
30. can’t keep up
Why not... more for women
unsure of level of fitness
required
more of a novelty,
not something i
would do regularly
31. Insight #3:
Traditional activities are done not for lack of
creativity, but because of low cost,
convenience, and a low barrier to entry in
terms of ability.
34. Conclusion:
Walking may not sound exotic or exciting but
it is free, flexible to schedule, can be social,
and is not high pressure to perform.
35. Conclusion:
Dancing = pure fun. It seems to be more of a
social skill than an exercise skill, one that
older adults are eager to learn in a low-
pressure environment. The existing
infrastructure of free community dance
nights makes this activity more cost-effective
in the long run.
36. Conclusion:
Activities like meditation require instruction
for beginners but even a one-touch training
session can have lasting impact, on the mind
and body.
37. Next steps:
Piloting walking groups in workplaces and
neighborhoods
Raising awareness of free dance community
lessons and dance nights, get buy-in from
spouse or close friend
Introducing people to the meetup.com
platform, empowering people to find
activities they enjoy
38. Thank you!
I’d love to hear your thoughts:
kchen12@stanford.edu
Katherine Chen / @kchen247
