Effects of a Physical Activity Intervention Program on Nutritional Status and Health-Related Physical Fitness in Thai Older Adults: Pilot Study

Introduction: Physical activity is important for achieving healthy aging. Objective: To analyze changes in anthropometric parameters and physical fitness among Chilean older adults after participating in a 16-week physical activity program and to evaluate whether there were differences in relation to their baseline nutritional status or not. Materials and methods: Pre-experimental quantitative study. The study population consisted of 176 older adults (155 women and 21 men) distributed in three groups: normal weight (n=56), overweight (n=67) and obese (n=53). The following variables were evaluated: body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHR) and physical fitness. Results: Significant decreases between pre- and post-measurements were found for WC (p<0.001), BMI (p=0.015), and WHR (p<0.001). Improvements were observed in the following tests: chair stand (p<0.001), arm curl (p<0.001), 2-min step (p<0.001), chair sit-&-reach (p=0.018) and back scratch (p=0.014). Regarding BMI, significant changes were observed between normal weight vs. overweight participants (p=0.001) and between normal weight vs. obese participants (p=0.001). Conclusion: Older adult participants that regularly attended the physical activity program were able to reduce their WC, BMI and WHR, and also improved their physical-functional performance on the chair stand, arm curl, 2-min step, chair sit-&-reach and back scratch tests. In addition, anthropometric parameters and physical fitness also improved regardless of their baseline nutritional status.

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Two-year longitudinal health-related fitness, anthropometry and body composition status amongst adolescents in Tlokwe Municipality: The PAHL Study

African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine ◽

10.4102/phcfm.v7i1.896 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Oluwatoyi O. Toriola ◽

Makama A. Monyeki ◽

Abel L. Toriola

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Body Composition ◽

Physical Fitness ◽

Physical Activity Intervention ◽

Positive Association ◽

Endurance Running ◽

Significant Positive Association ◽

Negatively Associated ◽

Health Related ◽

Health Related Fitness

Aim: To evaluate a two-year longitudinal development of health-related fitness, anthropometry and body composition status amongst adolescents in Tlokwe Municipality, Potchefstroom, South Africa.Setting: A total of 283 high-school learners (111 boys and 172 girls) of ages 14 and 15 years who were part of the ongoing Physical Activity and Health Longitudinal Study (PAHLS) participated in the study. For the purpose of the present study, data collected for 2011 and 2012 for anthropometric, body composition and health-related physical fitness were used.Results: Body mass index (BMI) classification of boys and girls for 2011 and 2012 showed that 24.3% of them were underweight compared with 21% in 2012. In 2011, 50% of boys and girls had normal bodyweight compared with 52% in 2012, whilst 25.5% of the total group of participants were overweight compared with 27% in 2012. Both boys and girls showed significant increases of 5.9% in body fat (BF) and 3.2 kg in body weight over two years’ measurements, respectively. Regarding health-related fitness (i.e BAH), boys showed an increase of 14.8 seconds whilst girls gained 9.6 seconds. Significant decreases were found for sit-ups in both boys and girls. A significant VO2max increase of 2.9 mL/kg/min. was found in boys over the time period. A non-significant decrease of -0.5 mL/kg/min. was observed in girls. Regression coefficients showed that changes in BMI were inversely associated with those in health-related physical fitness. The changes in percentage BF were negatively associated with standing broad jump (SBJ), bent arm hang (BAH) and VO2 max in both boys and girls. A low significant positive association was found between changes in waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) and SBJ in both genders, whilst inverse low associations were found between WHtR and BAH in girls and for VO2max in both genders.Conclusion: Changes in BMI, %BF and WHtR were negatively associated with strength and running performances in the participating children. The relative increase in overweight, especially in girls, negatively affected their endurance running and static strength performances. The health implications of the observed findings are discussed and recommendations offered for physical activity intervention in school physical education (PE) programmes.

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Associations between Physical Activity Levels with Nutritional Status, Physical Fitness and Biochemical Indicators in Older Adults

Clinical Nutrition ESPEN ◽

10.1016/j.clnesp.2021.07.014 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hamid Rajabi ◽

Mostafa Sabouri ◽

Elaheh Hatami

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Nutritional Status ◽

Physical Fitness ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Biochemical Indicators ◽

Physical Activity Levels

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The Impact of a Telehealth Intervention on Activity Profiles in Older Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Pilot Study

Geriatrics ◽

10.3390/geriatrics6030068 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 6 (3) ◽

pp. 68

Author(s):

Nathaniel Johnson ◽

Adam Bradley ◽

Lukus Klawitter ◽

Jane Johnson ◽

Lance Johnson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Pilot Study ◽

Vigorous Physical Activity ◽

Computer Time ◽

Health Concern ◽

Post Intervention ◽

Telehealth Intervention ◽

Health Related ◽

The Impact

Background: Physical inactivity during the COVID-19 pandemic is a public health concern for older adults. Telehealth presents a safe platform for conducting health-related interventions that may have additional benefits such as widespread reach. Our pilot study sought to examine how a telehealth intervention changed activity profiles in older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: There were n = 13 adults aged 70.6 ± 4.5 years that participated in a 6 week telehealth intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic. The didactic intervention contents were shared online, and participants worked with trained interviewers over the telephone to discuss physical activity. At baseline and post-intervention, the Multimedia Activity Recall for Children and Adults examined activity profiles, while accelerometry estimated time spent sedentary and in physical activity. Results: Relative to the baseline measures, there was an 88 min/day (95% confidence interval (CI): 39, 137) increase in computer time and 36 min/day (CI: 10, 62) reduction in time spent in active transport at post-intervention. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity participation also increased by an estimated 2 min/day (CI: −21, 26) and 12 min/week (CI: −154, 180), but this trend was not statistically significant. Conclusion: We recommend that support be provided to older adults transitioning to telehealth, especially as migration to telehealth progresses.

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Effects of Individualized Aerobic Exercise Training on Physical Activity and Health-Related Physical Fitness among Middle-Aged and Older Adults with Multimorbidity: A Randomized Controlled Trial

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18010101 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 101

Author(s):

Yi-Pang Lo ◽

Shang-Lin Chiang ◽

Chia-Huei Lin ◽

Hung-Chang Liu ◽

Li-Chi Chiang

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Older Adults ◽

Exercise Training ◽

Physical Fitness ◽

Motivational Interviewing ◽

Aerobic Exercise ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Aerobic Exercise Training ◽

Middle Aged ◽

Health Related

The presence of multimorbidity in middle-aged and older adults, which reduces their physical activity and quality of life, is a global health challenge. Exercise is one of the most important health behaviors that individuals can engage in. Previous studies have revealed that aerobic exercise training is beneficial for healthy middle-aged and older adults and those with various chronic diseases, but few studies have designed individualized aerobic exercise training for individuals with multimorbidity. Although individuals with multimorbidity are considerably less adherent to physical activity interventions, telephone-based motivational interviewing may help in strengthening motivation and promoting behavioral change for increasing physical activity and health-related physical fitness. This study aimed to examine whether a 12-week individualized aerobic exercise training in a rehabilitation center combined with telephone-based motivational interviewing is effective in promoting physical activity and health-related physical fitness among middle-aged and older adults with multimorbidity. A randomized controlled trial was conducted. Forty-three participants (aged > 40) were recruited and randomly assigned to the intervention group, comparison group, or control group. The participants’ physical activity and health-related physical fitness were assessed at baseline and at 12 weeks. The results indicated that after individualized aerobic exercise training combined with telephone-based motivational interviewing, the participants reported increased total physical activity (Fin = 481.3, p = 0.011), vigorous-intensity physical activity (Fin= 298.9, p = 0.007), dominant and nondominant hand grip (kg) (Fin = 1.96, p = 0.019; Fin = 2.19, p = 0.027, respectively), FEV1/FVC (Fin = 0.045, p = 0.043), VO2 max (ml/kg/min) (Fin = 5.30, p = 0.001), VO2 max predicted (%) (Fin = 21.6, p = 0.001), work (watts) (Fin = 22.5, p = 0.001), and anaerobic threshold (L/min) (Fin = 0.165, p = 0.011). Twelve weeks of individualized aerobic exercise training in the rehabilitation center combined with telephone-based motivational interviewing can increase the total physical activity, vigorous physical activity, and cardiorespiratory fitness of middle-aged and older adults with multimorbidity.

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