The Capital City Leisure Marchers, shown here with coach Val McNally at centre, range in age from early 60s to 80s. They enjoy the music, the challenge of complex marching routines, and the company. The weight-bearing exercise they do helps maintain their bone density and muscle strength, helping prevent osteoporosis and lessening the likelihood of falls and fractures. While in the 2000s older women (those over the age of 64) were generally healthier than older men, osteoporosis was an exception to this – women were seven times more likely than men to suffer from the disease. The loss of bone density and quality caused by osteoporosis increased the number of fractures suffered, with spine, hip, wrist, pelvis and upper arm particularly vulnerable.