No time to look back: approaching the finish line of life's course.

Gerontologists have labelled individuals who do not follow the normal aging pattern of reduced physical activity and declining health as "successfully aging" adults. Competitive and sport-involved elder persons represent a kind of elderly elite who may exhibit special psychological characteristics that help to explain their active approach to late life. As part of a larger study on the physical fitness and body composition of participants at seniors' games, a qualitative exploration of personal life philosophy was undertaken in order to initiate understanding about the cognitive make-up of competitive older men and women. Content analysis of open-ended survey questions about life in review and future goals permitted insight into life orientation differences between men and women. The responses provided evidence that sport and physical recreation may be an important type of coping strategy for some elderly adults who find life meaning and a sense of achievement in challenging themselves physically. Beyond a general optimism in life orientation, uncertainties about the nature of the future left many with a sense of urgency combined with specific short-term goal setting.