The bar chart illustrates the percentage of Australian men and women in different age groups who participated in regular physical activity in 2010.
Overall, women were generally more active than men in nearly all age categories, except among the youngest adults. While male participation fluctuated noticeably across the age range, female activity remained relatively consistent at around one-half.
Among people aged 15 to 24, slightly more men (47.7%) than women (52.8%) engaged in regular exercise. However, this pattern reversed in all older groups. For those aged 25 to 34, nearly half of females (48.9%) were physically active, compared with just over two-fifths of males (42.2%). The gender gap widened further among 35- to 44-year-olds, where women’s participation reached 52.5%, while men’s fell to 39.5%, the lowest figure recorded for either gender.
From 45 to 64 years of age, women continued to outnumber men in regular physical activity. Around 53% of females in both the 45-54 and 55-64 categories were active, compared with about 43% and 45% of males, respectively. In the oldest group, those 65 and over, the figures converged, with 46.7% of men and 47.1% of women taking part in exercise – almost equal proportions.