January 29, 2009

District 10 Report

Seniors invited to second Winter Walk and Resource Fair

By Councilmember Nancy Pyle
Special to the Times

On Wednesday, Feb. 11 I am hosting my second annual Westfield Oakridge Winter Walk and Resource Fair for Seniors (WOWW)! The event will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 11 in the Sears courtyard of the Westfield Oakridge Mall located at 925 Blossom Hill Road in San Jose. Through this event I will encourage my fellow senior citizens and their friends and family members to learn how to remain or become healthy.

Health is increasingly important, as we grow older. The benefits of exercise are numerous and include improved balance, cardiovascular health, bone density and flexibility—which all lead to an improved quality of life.

Aerobic exercise is not beyond our capabilities as seniors. Walking is a great way to raise your heart rate and the way I choose to exercise regularly. The Almaden and Southside Community Centers also offer daily exercise classes for seniors that would most definitely increase your heart rate. For information on classes at Almaden Com-munity Center call (408) 268-1133 or Southside Community Center call (408) 629-3336.

A free healthy breakfast with do-nations from Star-bucks and Jamba Juice will start at 8:30 a.m. At 9 a.m. the walk around the mall will begin and include instructional exercise stations dedicated to teaching seniors how to safely keep fit. Kaiser Permanente, a sponsor of the Walk, will lead warm up and cool down stretches to focus on the importance of stret-ching before and after exercise.

Resources from many Bay area org-anizations with tips for healthy living are available throughout the event. The festivities will end with a raffle featuring a var-iety of prizes including tickets to the SAP Open Tennis tournament at the HP Pavilion and a lunch with me.

It is never too late to begin an exercise program, so join me at the Westfield Oakridge Winter Walk and Resource Fair for Seniors and get the information you need to get started! For your convenience registration forms are available at www.sanjoseca.gov/district10/. Please call the District 10 office at (408) 535-4910 for more information.