C Bavister, Secretary

September Ramblings

Driving around town, it is wonderful to see the flower beds full of daffodils, while mine are struggling to come through. They give us the promise of warmer weather to come.

It was wonderful to see so many of you at the luncheon. We all had a lovely meal. Amused by the “robot” helping with serving. Wonder if it will help me with my household chores like folding the washing and doing the dishes.

The new rubbish regime edges closer with everyone should have their bins now. Mine is already full waiting for the big day, October 1st. Amused to read that in Southland people have had their bins taken away because they have put the wrong rubbish in the wrong bin. Lakes Council have also said that they will monitor what goes in the bins. Who would want that job? Rubbish monitor! Seems counterproductive, with no bin, people will unfortunately just dump their rubbish somewhere else. On the bright side, Council has published a new booklet explaining what goes into each bin and what the no-nos are. I recommend that you download it and educate yourself and your family and friends.

We all definitely know that is election year, with the news full of “they said this”, and “they have promised that”. Put a big ring around the calendar for Tuesday 13th October for our “Meet the Candidates” forum. We will be forwarding more info.

With the news of a hot dry summer predicted, life can only get more interesting.

Grey Power Federation

Grey Power Rotorua

General Election 2026 - Grey Power Questions

Priorities for Older New Zealanders

As you are aware by now Grey Power Rotorua is providing a couple of "Meet the Candidates" forums on 13 October 2026, with the first meeting 1pm and the second 5.30pm. It will be at the Arawa Bowling Club 64 Lytton Street. We have sent the candidates a specific question which is listed in the cover email for this Newsletter. However, we are fully aware that many of you will also attend other similar meetings or meet up with candidates in other settings. Here are some specific priority questions to candidates that affect the older population most.

Our Message to Election Candidates

Older New Zealanders have worked, paid taxes, raised families, volunteered and contributed to their communities throughout their lives. They deserve security, dignity, independence and a fair standard of living in retirement.

Grey Power is non-partisan. We do not tell members how to vote. We ask every candidate and political party to address the issues that matter to older New Zealanders and make clear commitments.

Protect New Zealand Superannuation

Grey Power’s current policy is no change to the fundamental settings of New Zealand Superannuation. This means:

Retaining the eligibility age at 65
Retaining universal entitlement
Opposing means or asset testing

NZ Superannuation is the foundation of retirement income for most older New Zealanders. People need confidence that the rules will not change unexpectedly.

Grey Power recognises that demographic and fiscal pressures will continue to generate debate about future affordability. If change is ever proposed, it must be evidence-based, carefully considered and supported by broad political consensus, with fair transition arrangements.

We ask candidates: Will you support retaining NZ Superannuation at 65 and oppose means or asset testing?

Make Housing a Priority

Affordable, appropriate housing is becoming one of the biggest challenges facing older New Zealanders.

Grey Power wants more smaller, accessible and affordable homes, greater availability of social housing for older people, and action to address the barriers preventing older people from downsizing.

The Accommodation Supplement also needs to reflect current housing costs.

Grey Power supports innovative community-led housing, including its Katikati housing pilot, as potential models for other communities.

We ask candidates: What will you do to increase affordable and accessible housing for older New Zealanders and improve housing support?

Improve access to Healthcare and Medicines

Older people often have greater healthcare needs while facing significant costs and delays.

Grey Power wants:

Affordable access to general practice
Timely specialist treatment
Better access to medicines
Improved dental care
Stronger health services in rural and provincial communities

New Zealanders should not have to wait years for medicines that are already widely available overseas.

We ask candidates: What will you do to improve timely and affordable access to healthcare and medicines for older people?

Protect independence and essential Services

Government should help older people remain independent and connected for as long as possible.

This requires accessible transport, reliable telecommunications, community services and support for people with hearing, vision or mobility difficulties.

Older people must not be disadvantaged by digital-only Government services or by where they live.

We ask candidates: How will you ensure older people can access essential services regardless of age, ability, location or digital skills?

Address the Cost of Living

For people relying primarily on NZ Superannuation, rising costs of housing, rates, insurance, electricity, food and healthcare can quickly erode living standards.

Government policy should recognise the particular pressures facing people on fixed or largely fixed incomes. This includes passing legislation to enable the creation of the 'Ratepayer Assistance Scheme (RAS)', indexing the winter energy payment to CPI, and reforming the Commerce Act so that lines companies contribute more of their own capital to building and replacing power infrastructure.

We ask candidates: What will you do to ensure older New Zealanders can meet essential costs and maintain a reasonable standard of living?

Prepare for an ageing New Zealand

New Zealand needs a coordinated response to its ageing population, covering retirement income, housing, health, transport, employment and community infrastructure. Older people should have a meaningful voice in developing policies that affect them.

Grey Power will continue to advocate for evidence-based policy and genuine consultation with older New Zealanders.

We ask candidates: What is your vision for an ageing New Zealand, and how will older people be involved in developing policy?

Grey Power’s Six Election Priorities

Superannuation – Keep NZ Superannuation at 65 and retain universal entitlement.
Retirement security – Ensure any future changes are evidence-based, carefully planned and introduced with fair transition arrangements.
Housing – Increase affordable, accessible and appropriate housing for older people.
Healthcare – Improve timely and affordable access to primary care, specialist services and medicines.
Independence and affordability – Protect essential services and address the cost-of-living pressures facing older people.
An ageing New Zealand – Develop a coordinated response to population ageing and ensure older people have a meaningful voice.

Our question to every candidate

What will you do to ensure older New Zealanders can live with security, dignity and independence?

Shrey Vazir, Physiotherapist

Perfect Posture, Form and Exercises?

I think we’ve made exercise WAY more complicated than it needs to be:

Perfect posture
Perfect form
Perfect exercises

A giant list of movements you should “never” do. This fear-based advice can convince people in their 60s, 70s and 80s that their bodies are too fragile to get stronger. No wonder so many people are afraid of getting started. I want to bust 5 exercise myths that I wish would disappear for good.

MYTH #1: “Never let your knees go over your toes.”
This might be one of the most repeated exercise “rules” on the internet. But your knees are supposed to travel over your toes. They do it when you climb stairs, get up from the floor, or squat down to pick something up.

The question is not: "Should my knees go over my toes?"

It is: "How much can my knees comfortably tolerate right now?"

Maybe today that's a shallow squat while holding onto a chair. Over time, you can gradually build from there. Your body doesn't need avoidance. It needs preparation.

MYTH #2: “Stop slouching!”
I have a confession; I slouch ALL the time. There's no single magical posture that you need to maintain all day.

I might slouch while writing this newsletter, lean back five minutes later, get up for a glass of water, and go for a walk after lunch.

That's why one of my favourite sayings is:

Your best posture is your NEXT posture. Instead of obsessing over sitting perfectly straight, change positions and move regularly.

MYTH #3: “Your form needs to be perfect.”
Form matters. But perfect form? That doesn't exist.

Watch ten different people squat and you'll see ten slightly different squats. Our bodies, proportions, mobility and experience are different. Start with a version you can comfortably manage, use reasonable technique, and progress gradually. Good enough and consistent beats perfect and terrified.

MYTH #4: “Back pain? You MUST strengthen your core.”
This one surprises a lot of people. A stronger core can absolutely be useful.

But back pain doesn't automatically mean you have a “weak core” that needs fixing. Walking might help. Strength training might help. Gradually returning to activities you enjoy might help.

Sometimes simply staying active and allowing time for recovery is exactly what you need.

There isn't one magical exercise — or one body part — that holds the answer for everyone.

Your back is more than your abs.

MYTH #5: “Older adults shouldn't lift heavy.”

Getting older is exactly why maintaining strength becomes so important.

One of our 60+ Strong for Life members started with weights as light as 1kg. By Day 90?

He was lifting close to 25kg.

He didn't walk into the gym on Day 1 and pick up 25kg. He earned it gradually. And that's the important distinction. “Heavy” isn't a specific number. Heavy is relative to YOU. For one person, that's 2.5kg. For another, it's 25kg.

The goal isn't to prove how much you can lift. It's to gradually build a body capable of doing more. Because I'm far less concerned about a 70-year-old eventually lifting something heavy than I am about them slowly losing the strength to carry groceries, climb stairs, get off the floor, or play with their grandchildren.

Bottom Line

Your body is not made of glass
You can bend
You can slouch
Your knees can go over your toes
Your form doesn't have to be flawless
And yes, you can get STRONG as you get older
Start where you are
Progress gradually

And don't let fear-based advice convince you that your body is capable of less than it really is.

Onwards and upwards 🚀.

Consumer NZ

How to get your Money back from 'Ghost Stores'

Some online fashion websites are misleading shoppers by posing as local stores and sending shoddy goods – or worse, sending nothing at all. Known as ‘ghost stores’, these fake online shops are a growing form of scam. But there are ways to spot them, and if you do get caught out, ways to get your money back.

“I was just scrolling through Facebook, and this ad came up for a beautiful dress on sale at Elyse Auckland,” Anna tells us. “It looked so comfortable and pretty, and I thought it would be good for the summer, so I put in an order for two.”

Anna spent $124 on the dresses and postage, but when they arrived, the dresses weren’t as advertised. “They’d claimed the dresses were premium cotton. I put my hand in the parcel
to pull out the first dress, and as soon as I touched it, I knew it wasn’t cotton. I pulled it out, and it was like a children’s tent.”

“I didn’t even want to try them on, so I decided to send them back.” In a lengthy back and forth, Elyse Auckland’s customer service team attempted to talk Anna out of a return, offering heavy discounts on further sales. However, suspecting further products would be equally poor quality, Anna insisted on a return and refund, and Elyse Auckland eventually relented.

The problem was that Elyse Auckland doesn’t exist, and the return address for the business was in China. “I packed up the dresses and took them to the post office, and that’s when I
found out it was going to cost $66 to send them back … I sent them off, waited for ages and, after a few weeks, I received a parcel from China, and it was my parcel – the post office told me the recipient had refused the delivery. It also told me it’d had quite a few ladies come in recently who were upset about very similar incidents.”

Anna was now $190 out of pocket, with two unwearable dresses to show for it. “I can’t afford to waste that sort of money, and it's a real knock to pay that much and not receive what I’d expected.”

Anna’s story is just one of the complaints we’ve heard about ghost or fake stores. Ghost stores look like local and legitimate businesses, but don’t physically exist in New Zealand.
These fake stores often have a posh-sounding name that includes a location in New Zealand. In some cases, the stores will say they’re closing down and are holding a final sale.

The Commerce Commission has also received reports about bogus boutiques, including Wanaka Boutique, Milla Wellington, Tauranga Boutique and, Elyse Auckland. Last year, the commission received 268 complaints about ghost stores.

A few online checks will help you steer clear of ghost stores:

Check the store has a physical address and contact details if you want to call or email them later.
A Google Map search is useful for seeing whether the store actually exists.
Look up the Companies Register to see whether the business has registered in Aotearoa.
Be wary of slick branding, generic or AI produced images, and ads on social media.
Check the social media profile and see how long the store has existed for. If it has few followers, likes or posts, it could be a sign it’s not a legit business.
Be suspicious of closing down sales and big discounts.
Before purchasing anything, check the shipping, return or refund information on the website to see where goods need to be returned.
Check what payment methods are accepted. A real retailer will have multiple ways to pay for goods, while fake store may only have one when you get to the checkout.

All businesses operating in Aotearoa are required to comply with the Fair Trading Act and Consumer Guarantees Act. But because fake stores are usually based overseas, it can be very difficult to make them fix issues and comply with our laws.

If you’ve bought a substandard item from a fake store, rather than spending a lot of money returning it to the ‘store’, we recommend you ask your bank for a chargeback. A chargeback is where money you have paid to a retailer for an item using a debit card or credit card is reversed out of that retailer’s account and funded back to your own.

You can use a chargeback in a range of situations, including when you’ve paid for goods and services that weren’t as described, the goods don’t arrive or are faulty. You may still be required to return the goods but if the Consumer Guarantees Act has been breached, you shouldn’t have to fork out any extra to return them.

If you’ve ordered something and didn’t receive it from an online store, along with getting a chargeback, you can also report the store by emailing the Domain Name Commission on abuse@dnc.org.nz.

If the store only has a social media profile, you can report it to the platform (e.g. Facebook or Instagram).

You can also report the fake store to the Commerce Commission.

September Ramblings

​Perfect Posture, Form and Exercises?

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Perfect Posture, Form and Exercises?