Elderly are encouraged to exercise in Debrecen

‘The health promotion programme of the Move, Debrecen! movement is exemplary,’ was said at the regional meeting of the National Network of Walking Senior Citizens’ Club at the Nagyerdei Stadium on the 13th of  February 2024. The event, organised by the Monspart Sarolta Foundation for Healthy Lifestyles, provided an overview of local programmes to promote activity in older age and the positive physiological effects of regular physical activity.

In Debrecen, forest walks, hikes and even competitions are regularly organised in all seasons for older and younger people alike. This is also part of the Move Debrecen! movement, which was launched two years ago and has already attracted more than 54,000 people from Debrecen to its various health promotion programmes.

‘We support this movement so much because we see that it strengthens the city’s identity, and we can do something for the people who live here in the city since Debrecen is therefore a caring city,’ Deputy Mayor Diána Széles pointed out.

Zsolt Monszpart called the Move, Debrecen! movement exemplary. The chairman of the board of trustees of the foundation, which is building a nationwide network of walking clubs, stressed that exercise is important because it can prolong our lives.

‘Long-term studies have shown that people who exercise regularly over the age of 50 can gain an extra 5-6 years of quality life,’ the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Monspart Sarolta Foundation for Healthy Lifestyles said.

Almost a hundred people attended the meeting of the walking senior citizens’ clubs. Lajos Kósa, Member of Parliament, who was the main patron of the event, said that the two and a half million pensioners in Hungary are a resource for the whole society and it is crucial that people stay active in old age.

‘This type of a Movement, to do something for your health, to move, to walk, is also good because you are in a community,’ Lajos Kósa said.

The regional meeting of the walking senior citizens’ clubs also reviewed the positive physiological effects of regular exercise and the health promotion programmes of the Move, Debrecen!

The programme was of course complemented by a walking tour.

Source: www.dehir.hu