“Not Everybody’s an Athlete, But They Certainly Can Move”: Facilitators of Physical Activity Maintenance in Older Adults in a Northern and Rural Setting

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 854-863 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsten Ward ◽  
Anne Pousette ◽  
Chelsea A. Pelletier
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Rural Setting ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Semistructured Interviews ◽  
Individual Program ◽  
Physical Activity Maintenance

Although the benefits of maintaining a physical activity regime for older adults are well known, it is unclear how programs and facilities can best support long-term participation. The purpose of this study is to determine the facilitating factors of physical activity maintenance in older adults at individual, program, and community levels. Nine semistructured interviews were conducted with individuals aged 60 years and older and long-term participants (>6 months) in community-based group exercise at a clinical wellness facility in northern British Columbia, Canada. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed via inductive thematic analysis. Themes identified as facilitators of physical activity included (a) social connections, (b) individual contextual factors, and (c) healthy aging. Older adults are more likely to maintain physical activity when environments foster healthy aging and provide opportunity for social engagement.

Determining the Long-Term Effectiveness of a Group-Based Physical Activity Program

2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 401-408
Author(s):  
Anamica Batra ◽  
Richard C. Palmer ◽  
Elena Bastida ◽  
H. Virginia McCoy ◽  
Hafiz M. R. Khan
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Population Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
South Florida ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Evidence Based Programs ◽  
The Impact

Objective. In 2015, only half (48%) of older adults in the United States (≥60 years) reported engaging in any kind of physical activity. Few studies examine the impact of evidence-based programs when adopted in community-based settings. The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of EnhanceFitness (EF) upto 12-months. Method. EF was offered to older adults in South Florida. A total of 222 EF classes were offered between October 2008 and December 2014. Program consisted of a 1-hour session held three times a week. Even though participation was required for 4 months, 1,295 participants continued the program for at least 1 year. Results. All participants showed significant improvement in outcome measures. A mean change of 1.5, 1.7, and 1.9 was seen in number of chair stands at 4, 8, and 12 months (p < .001), respectively. The number of arm curls performed improved from 16.8 at baseline to 18.8, 18.8, and 19.2 at 4-, 8-, and 12-months, respectively. Participants improved their up-and-go time by decreasing from 9.1 (baseline) to 8.7 (4 months) to 8.6 (12 months; p = .001). Discussion. Randomized controlled trials are commonly used to determine the efficacy of an intervention. These interventions when disseminated at the population level have the potential to benefit large masses. EF is currently offered at more than 700 locations. This tremendous success of EF brings attention to an important question of continuous monitoring of these programs to ensure program consistency and intended outcomes. The model used by the Healthy Aging Regional Collaborative could be replicated by other communities.

What Sustains Long-Term Adherence to Structured Physical Activity After a Cardiac Event?

2012 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia M. Martin ◽  
Catherine B. Woods
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Exercise Program ◽  
Clinical Group ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Established Coronary Heart Disease ◽  
Rich Information ◽  
Constant Comparative Analysis

Purpose:Research addressing methods to sustain long-term adherence to physical activity among older adults is needed. This study investigated the motivations and supports deemed necessary to adhere to a community-based cardiac rehabilitation (CBCR) program by individuals with established coronary heart disease.Methods:Twenty-four long-term adherers (15 men, 9 women; age 67.7 ± 16.7 yr) took part in focus-group discussions.Results:Constant comparative analysis supported previous research in terms of the importance of referral procedures, social support, and knowledge of health benefits in influencing uptake and adherence to CBCR. Results also highlighted the routine of a structured class and task-, barrier-, and recovery-specific self-efficacy as necessary to sustain long-term adherence for this specific clinical group.Discussion:Older adults themselves provide rich information on how to successfully support their long-term adherence to structured exercise sessions. Further research into how to build these components into any exercise program is necessary.

scholarly journals Experiences and Strategies Influencing Older Adults to Continue Playing Walking Football

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Rachel Cholerton ◽  
Helen Quirk ◽  
Jeff Breckon ◽  
Joanne Butt
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Sport Participation ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Perceived Benefits ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Semistructured Interviews ◽  
Conscious Process ◽  
Adapted Sports

Adults aged 55+ years are most likely to be inactive, despite research suggesting that older adults experience multiple benefits when participating in physical activity and sport. Limited research focuses on long-term continuation of sport participation in this population, especially in “adapted sports” like walking football. This study explored the experiences of walking football maintenance in 55- to 75-year-old players. Semistructured interviews were conducted, with 17 older adults maintaining walking football play over 6 months. The inductive analysis revealed five higher-order themes representing maintenance influences and two higher-order themes relating to maintenance mechanisms (i.e., the conscious process by which players maintain). Influences when maintaining walking football included individual- and culture-level influences (e.g., perceived benefits of maintenance and ability acceptance). Maintenance mechanisms included cognitions and behaviors (e.g., scheduling sessions and redefining physical activity expectations). Findings highlight novel implications for policy and practice, which are important to consider when delivering walking football to older adults.

scholarly journals Behavioral Health, Social Engagement, and Long-Term Care Services Use Among Community Older Adults: USA vs. Taiwan

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 348-349
Author(s):  
Su-I Hou ◽  
Chien-Ching Li ◽  
Darren Liu
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Behavioral Health ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Long Term Care ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Term Care ◽  
Aging In Community ◽  
Community Dwelling Older Adults

Abstract As healthcare advances, older adults are living longer. While 90% of older adults prefer aging in their own homes and communities, it is important to examine key factors influencing healthy aging-in-community and community-based long-term care (LTC) services available in different countries. This symposium examines behavioral health, social engagement, and LTC services utilization among community-dwelling older adults in the USA and Taiwan. Lessons learned from older adults across countries will provide insights for tailored community-based LTC services and program development. Dr. Hou from The University of Central Florida (UCF) will highlight similarities and differences in behavioral health profiles and the topics that most interest community-dwelling older Americans participating in three aging-in-community programs in Central Florida. Dr. Wang from Case Western Reserve University will examine the impact of neighborhood social cohesion on mobility among community-dwelling older Americans aged 65 and older from the national Health and Retirement Study. Dr. Liu from National Cheng-Kung University in Taiwan will share results of healthy lifestyle on quality of life among community-dwelling older adults in southern Taiwan. Dr. Young from State University of New York at Albany will compare long-term care use among community-dwelling older adults with and without dementia in Central Taiwan. Finally, Drs. Cao and Hou from UCF will analyze home and community-based services in the USA versus Taiwan. This symposium will further discuss similarities and differences of key factors related to healthy aging-in-community, along with practical recommendations and lessons learned across countries and cultural environments to improve community-based long-term care services and programs.

What Keeps Them Going, and What Gets Them Back? Older Adults’ Beliefs About Physical Activity Maintenance

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Katherine Huffman ◽  
Steve Amireault
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Control Beliefs ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Change Strategies ◽  
Semistructured Interviews ◽  
Promotion Of Physical Activity ◽  
Design And Methods ◽  
And Control ◽  
Physical Activity Maintenance

Abstract Background and Objectives The overall purpose of this article was to investigate beliefs related to physical activity maintenance among adults aged 60 years or older. Research Design and Methods Study 1 identified modal, salient behavioral, normative, and control beliefs using a free-response format. Study 2 was designed to gain a deeper understanding about these beliefs through in-depth semistructured interviews. Results Findings indicate that perceived physical and emotional benefits, scheduling and having a physical activity routine, social support, and features of indoor and outdoor locations are facilitating of maintenance. Some beliefs appear more relevant to sustained engagement in physical activity, while others may be more helpful for reengagement after 1 week of inactivity. Discussion and Implications This investigation raises new hypotheses for future research and provides insight for the use and adaptation of behavior change strategies that are potentially more acceptable and effective for the promotion of physical activity maintenance for older adults.

Volunteering for the Health of the Public

Pained ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 221-222
Author(s):  
Michael D. Stein ◽  
Sandro Galea
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Good Health ◽  
Positive Health ◽  
Shared Experience ◽  
The Public ◽  
Self Rated Health

This chapter examines the importance of volunteering in facilitating healthy aging. There is a strong link between volunteering and good health. Formal volunteering has been associated with reduced mortality and increased self-rated health and physical function. Indeed, a 2018 research suggests that those who have the greatest health vulnerabilities are, in fact, most likely to experience positive health benefits from volunteering. How does volunteering help? It can increase physical activity, social engagement, and brain stimulation. It may decrease social isolation, as new friendships emerge from the shared experience of volunteering. Moreover, it can promote confidence and enhance one’s sense of meaning and purpose. Volunteering might be particularly beneficial to cognitive functioning because it allows older adults to engage in, and master, complex tasks, many of which might be new to them.

scholarly journals Mobility, Physical Activity, and Social Engagement of Community-Living Older Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 27-27
Author(s):  
Wenjun Li ◽  
Lien Quach
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Healthy Aging ◽  
Ethnic Disparities ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Community Living ◽  
Community Programs ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Mobility, physical activity and social engagement are important to healthy aging and independent living among older adults. This symposium includes four related studies on these issues. Dr. Lien Quach and her team examined racial and ethnic disparities in social engagement among community-living older adults using data from the national Health and Retirement Study. The analysis found that Asians and Hispanics had significantly lower social engagement score compared with non-Hispanic Whites, advocating for further investigations of the causes of racial disparities in social engagement. Dr. Su-I Hou’s study examined the impact of physical activity and social relationship on social engagement. The study found positive impacts of more physical activity, better social relationships and volunteers on social engagement. The results have important implications to promotion of social engagement among older adults participating in aging-in-community programs. Dr. Ladda Thiamwong’s study demonstrated the benefits of using assistive health technology (AHT) to assess the relationships between fall risks, body compositions and objectively measured physical activity in older adults. Dr. Thiamwong’ will discuss the research protocol and preliminary results. Dr. Li’s Health Aging and Neighborhood Study examined variations of older adults’ driving behaviors by sex, age, race, income, health status and housing density of the neighborhoods. The study found substantial differences in mobility and driving patterns by both personal characteristics and neighborhood living environment. The findings have important implications to community programs that support older adults aging in place.

scholarly journals Long-term participation in community group exercise improves lower extremity muscle strength and delays age-related declines in walking speed and physical function in older adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chisato Hayashi ◽  
Soshiro Ogata ◽  
Tadashi Okano ◽  
Hiromitsu Toyoda ◽  
Sonoe Mashino
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Physical Exercise ◽  
Lower Extremity ◽  
Physical Function ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Group Exercise ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Lower Extremity Muscle

Abstract Background The effects of group exercise on the physical function of community-dwelling older adults remain unclear. The changes in lower extremity muscle strength, timed up and go (TUG) time, and the motor fitness scale (MFS), over time, among older adults who expressed a willingness to participate in community-based physical exercise groups, were determined using multilevel modelling. Methods We analyzed data of 2407 older adults between April 2010 and December 2019 from the registry of physical tests of community-based physical exercise groups. We conducted a retrospective cohort study to assess the effect of physical exercise on lower extremity muscle strength, TUG time, and MFS scores. The durations of the exercises were evaluated by frequency of physical test’s participate. Results A deterioration in lower extremity muscle strength was found in the short-term participant group only. However, in the mid-term and long-term participation groups, lower extremity muscle strength showed a trend of improvement. The TUG time and the MFS score were negatively correlated with increasing age in both groups divided by the duration of participation. However, there was a slower rate of deterioration in the long-term participation group. Discussion Lower extremity muscle strength, TUG time, and MFS scores decline with increasing age and there were differences in the slope of deterioration that depended on the duration of participation in community-based group exercise. Conclusion Participation in group exercise improved lower extremity muscle strength, TUG time, and MFS scores of older adults living in a community. The positive effects of group exercise were dependent on long-term participation.

scholarly journals Profiles of Loneliness and Social Isolation in Physically Active and Inactive Older Adults in Rural England

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 3971
Author(s):  
Jolanthe de Koning ◽  
Suzanne H. Richards ◽  
Grace E. R. Wood ◽  
Afroditi Stathi
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Physical Environment ◽  
Vigorous Physical Activity ◽  
Social Contact ◽  
Physical Activity Behaviour ◽  
Rural Setting ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Physically Active

Objective: Loneliness and social isolation are associated with higher risk of morbidity and mortality and physical inactivity in older age. This study explored the socioecological context in which both physically active and inactive older adults experience loneliness and/or social isolation in a UK rural setting. Design: A mixed-methods design employed semi structured interviews and accelerometer-measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Interviews explored the personal, social and environmental factors influencing engagement with physical activities, guided by an adapted-socioecological model of physical activity behaviour. Findings: Twenty-four older adults (MeanAge = 73 (5.8 SD); 12 women) were interviewed. Transcripts were thematically analysed and seven profiles of physical activity, social isolation and loneliness were identified. The high-MVPA group had established PA habits, reported several sources of social contact and evaluated their physical environment as activity friendly. The low MVPA group had diverse experiences of past engagement in social activities. Similar to the high MVPA, they reported a range of sources of social contact but they did not perceive the physical environment as activity friendly. Conclusions: Loneliness and/or social isolation was reported by both physically active and inactive older adults. There is wide diversity and complexity in types and intensity of PA, loneliness and social isolation profiles and personal, social and environmental contexts.

scholarly journals Promoting Stair Climbing as an Exercise Routine among Healthy Older Adults Attending a Community-Based Physical Activity Program

Sports ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuko Hongu ◽  
Mieko Shimada ◽  
Rieko Miyake ◽  
Yusuke Nakajima ◽  
Ichirou Nakajima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Stair Climbing ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Healthy Older Adults ◽  
Exercise Routine ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Leg Muscle

Stair climbing provides a feasible opportunity for increasing physical activity (PA) in daily living. The purpose of this study was to examine the daily walking and stair-climbing steps among healthy older adults (age: 74.0 ± 4.9 years; Body Mass Index (BMI): 22.3 ± 2.5 kg/m2). Participants (34 females and 15 males) attended a weekly 6-month community-based PA program. During the entire program period, daily walking and stair-climbing steps were recorded using a pedometer (Omron, HJA-403C, Kyoto, Japan). Before and after the 6-month program, height, body weight and leg muscle strength were assessed. After the 6-month program, the mean walking and stair-climbing steps in both women and men increased significantly (p ≤ 0.01). Daily stair-climbing steps increased about 36 steps in women and 47 steps in men. At the end of 6 months, only male participants had significant correlation between the number of stair steps and leg muscle strength (r = 0.428, p = 0.037). This study reported that healthy older adults attending the community-based PA program had regular stair-climbing steps during daily living. Promoting stair climbing as an exercise routine was feasible to increase their walking and stair-climbing steps.

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