HEALTH BENEFITS OF BOWLING

Dr. Richard Smith, a board-certified internal medicine physician at Geisinger, said that bowling is a worthwhile activity that offers physical, social, mental and emotional benefits.

“Bowling has something for all ages,” said Smith. “Anyone from age five to 95 can bowl and accommodations can be made for folks in wheelchairs or other special needs. It’s open to people of all ages and skills and the cost isn’t prohibitive for most people.”

Put all those things together and you have the makings for a good family outing. And while it might not compare to running or lifting weights, any amount of exercise and stretching is good for a person, he explained. And, according to Healthfitnessrevolution.com, bowling helps you slim down by speeding up your metabolism.

Before getting started, like any type of activity, Smith recommends stretching and warming up your muscles.

“That’s always a good idea,” he said.

“(Bowling) really isn’t great cardio unless you get really excited about your bowling,” joked Smith. “But it’s a good activity to build balance, strengthening muscles and eye coordination.”

“Throwing the bowling ball and hitting the pins requires a great amount of hand-eye coordination. This kind of focus stimulates mental alertness, concentration and tactical strategy. This makes bowling the perfect game for young people to sharpen motor skills and hand-eye coordination, and for older people to refine tactics,” according to Healthfitnessrevolution.com.

On the emotional side of things, Smith said bowling can help those feeling lonely or isolated.

“Bowling is something we don’t generally do alone,” he said. “It’s something of a social outing.”

“And socialization is so important to our well being,” he said.

Isolation is one of biggest issues the elderly population faces, so anything people can do with friends or family that may give a new outlook on life — even for a while — would be excellent, Smith explained.

“It could be a good way to make friends,” he said.

Smith recalled he made a lot of friends in the Air Force through bowling.

“It was a way to start that ball rolling and help the socialization process,” he said.

Rob Inglis/Inside PA

is a recreational sport that draws in all ages. Camp and his son, Justin, run the bowling alley, which is home to three local high school bowling teams — Selinsgrove, Midd-West and Mifflinburg — and a variety of bowling leagues.

“It’s a great family activity,” said Camp. “For a lot of families it is a generational thing — the parents bowl, so the kids bowl.”

It’s also good for your physical and mental health, he said.

“You can make a lot of friends,” he said. “There’s a fellowship here. And you use different muscles in your body when you bowl.”

At Best Bowl, Camp hosts birthday parties as well as special theme nights like “Glow Bowl.”

There is also a youth league that boasts approximately 100 kids.

“If I see someone come in more than two or three times to bowl, I’ll try to recruit them to one of the leagues,” he said.

Currently 16 teams play at Best Bowl, some competitive, some, not so much.

“Some people just want to come and have fun, others are more serious,” he said. The teams vary between three and four people.

He also sees a lot of groups or organizations hosting team building events, birthday parties, holiday parties and private hours for homeschool, church groups, scouts or special needs groups.