At 6.30am most mornings, a group of Gulmarrad seniors are already up and active, laughing and lobbing balls across the pickleball court at Lincoln Lifestyle retirement village in the NSW Northern Rivers region.
Lorraine Napper, Janette McGregor, Margaret Sims and Susan Usher’s morning matches serve as a key component of community life at the over-50s lifestyle estate.
Pickleball is one of the fastest growing sports in Australia with participation rates growing by 42% in the last year alone. The game is inclusive for all ages, and half of its participants are aged over 56-years.
Lorraine, 72, said she picked up the paddle just a few months after downsizing to the community last year and discovered it was a fun new way to stay active and socialise with her new neighbours.
“I’ve played a lot of sport in my life and was always a swimmer, but I never played anything like tennis – let alone pickleball – until I moved in here,” Lorraine said.
“Staying active is really important to me. As we get older, doctors say we’ve got to keep moving and do some form of exercise at least four times a week. Pickleball is a great way to move your body and is good for the brain as well.”
Pickleball’s simple rules, make the sport easy to pick up and creates opportunities to socialise while staying active.
Janette, 67, said she embraced the early morning fun after settling into her new home.
“It’s not hard and it’s fun,” Janette said. “The court is small but you have to do a bit of running around which is good cardio, and we get to have a hit, giggle and meet new people.
“I’m really enjoying getting out there with the girls, making new friends and building that comradery.”
Lorraine said interest in their small group is growing amongst the community.
“We like to say we’re training for the 2032 Olympics, but really, we’re just keeping active, having fun, and enjoying life with our neighbours, and that’s what this community is really about,” she said.
“We’ve got four girls who play regularly at the moment, and there’s a few guys in the community who want to join us but they say it’s too early for them to get out of bed.
“We’re always asking people if they want to have a game and we hope to see more of our neighbours joining in as the community grows.”
