Topic spans: 1968 - 2000
Getting Physical: Canada's Fitness Movement
In the 1970s, Canadians went from couch potatoes to super jocks. Well, not quite. But at least during that decade they did start to get up and get fit. It was thanks to nagging TV ads, the example of an active prime minister and embarrassment compared to some very robust Swedes. But the nagging hasn't been entirely successful. Thirty years later the average Canadian is still overweight and spends more time on the sofa than at the gym.
6 television clips
7 radio clips
A Swedish land of fitness
Broadcast Date: Aug. 12, 1973
Thank God television programs don't start in Sweden until 6 p.m., says Dr. Per-Olaf Astrand. He is a Swedish physiology professor speaking to Canadians about their lack of physical activity. A 1972 survey of 67,000 people finds the majority of Canadians are lounging in front of the TV more than the average Swede. Even worse, 88 per cent over the age of 25 dedicate less than an hour a week to physical fitness.Dr. Astrand visits from a country where people are in peak condition, even later on in life. He claims Canada's physical fitness programs to this point have been "almost a complete failure."
A Swedish land of fitness
• The fitness agency ParticipACTION was created in 1972 to promote physical fitness in Canada. Pierre Trudeau's Liberals launched it with a shocking television advertisement. The TV spot compared two runners, a 60-year-old Swede and a 30-year-old Canadian, and claimed they were "in about the same physical shape."• A clip of the commercial can be seen in a separate television news report.
• A ParticipACTION official later said the agency had no statistical evidence to back up the famous commercial's claim.
A Swedish land of fitness
Medium: Radio
Program: Rebound
Broadcast Date: Aug. 12, 1973
Guest(s): Per-Olaf Astrand
:
Duration: 1:56
Last updated:
March 6, 2003
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13 clips in this topic . page
Television
7:03
A fitness expert demonstrates some easy exercises to help women stay fit and trim after the holidays.
Topic
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A Swedish land of fitness.
The CBC Digital Archives Website.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Last updated: March 6, 2003.
[Page consulted on Feb. 9, 2010.]