Pickleball is the racquet sport currently taking the world by storm. Combining elements of tennis, badminton and ping-pong, pickleball is a less intense form of the game that’s perfect for older people.
Getting enough exercise each week is crucial for healthy ageing, but it can be hard to find the motivation to go for a walk. Playing sport is a more interesting way to get your steps in, but that can be easier said than done with an older body.
Enter pickleball. This easy-to-learn racquet sport shares many aspects with other sports. The game is played between either two players (singles) or four players (doubles), each of which use a smooth-faced paddle to hit a hollow, perforated plastic ball over a 0.86cm (34-inch) net back and forth until one side is either unable to return the ball or commits a rule infraction.
The game can be played indoors or outdoors and uses a 13.4m (44-foot) by 6.1m (20-foot) court with similar markings to a tennis or badminton court.
Pickleball was originally invented in 1965 in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Initially only really popular in that part of the US, pickleball’s reach expanded quickly and there are now more than 30 million registered pickleball players worldwide.
The sport’s popularity has been attributed to its easy-to-learn but difficult-to-master rules, its appeal to a wide range of ages (particularly older people) and fitness levels.
Pickleball can boost your longevity
Exercise of any kind has a life-lengthening effect, but measuring the specific effects different sports have on longevity yields some surprising results.
A recent Mayo Clinic study set out to rank different sports based on how many years of life expectancy they added. The study found racquet sports came out on top, adding an average of around eight extra years, compared with 3.7 years for cycling or 3.4 years for jogging.
Another recent study found playing pickleball has a number of mental health benefits in older adults, including greater life satisfaction and lower rates of depression, stress, and unhappiness.
But the authors of both studies were at pains to point out that it may be the benefits of exercise in general that is increasing life spans and improving mental health.
Why is pickleball good for older people specifically?
At its core, pickleball is a simplified version of other racquet sports. It’s played on a smaller court than tennis or badminton, so less ground to cover.
Players use wide flat paddles to hit a plastic ball punctured with holes (similar to a wiffle ball) over the net. The ball’s plastic construction, combined with air flowing through holes, means a pickleball doesn’t move with the same speed as a tennis ball or shuttlecock once it’s struck.
As mentioned previously, a regulation pickle ball court is 13.4m by 6.1m for both doubles and singles, which is roughly the same size as a doubles badminton court.
There is also a line running horizontal across the court, 2.1m away from the net on both sides. This marks the ‘non-volley’ area, also known as the ‘kitchen’. If your feet are in this area, then you are prohibited from hitting the ball back over the net on the full (a volley) and must instead wait for the ball to bounce once before returning.
The result is a game that’s quick, but not as fast paced as tennis. A game that will get you moving, but not as much as badminton.
Pickleball is a simple enough game that you could probably pick it up yourself, but if you’d like to find your local pickleball club, check out the Pickleball Australia Association website.
Have you tried pickleball? Do you play any other sports? Let us know in the comments section below.
Also read: Weekend exercise could be as good for brain health as daily exercise
I started playing pickleball about six months ago. I was 83 at the time, and very unsure as to whether I would be capable of this kind of vigorous activity. After trying it for a few months, the penny has finally dropped and I am having a great time! It’s fun, good exercise, and very good for social activity – just make sure you get with a group that doesn’t take themselves too seriously!