Gait speed is a measure of health and functioning. Physical and cognitive determinants of gait are amenable to interventions, but best practices remain unclear. We investigated the effects of a 12‐month physical and cognitive training (PTCT) on gait speed, dual‐task cost in gait speed, and executive functions (EFs) compared with physical training (PT) (ISRCTN52388040). Community‐dwelling older adults, who did not meet physical activity recommendations, were recruited (n = 314). PT included supervised walking/balance (once weekly) and resistance/balance training (once weekly), home exercises (2–3 times weekly), and moderate aerobic activity 150 min/week in bouts of >10 min. PTCT included the PT and computer training (CT) on EFs 15–20 min, 3–4 times weekly. The primary outcome was gait speed. Secondary outcomes were 6‐min walking distance, dual‐task cost in gait speed, and EF (Stroop and Trail Making B‐A). The trial was completed by 93% of the participants (age 74.5 [SD3.8] years; 60% women). Mean adherence to supervised sessions was 59%–72% in PT and 62%–77% in PTCT. Home exercises and CT were performed on average 1.9 times/week. Weekly minutes spent in aerobic activities were 188 (median 169) in PT and 207 (median 180) in PTCT. No significant interactions were observed for gait speed (PTCT‐PT, 0.02; 95%CI −0.03, 0.08), walking distance (−3.8; −16.9, 9.3) or dual‐task cost (−0.22; −1.74, 1.30). Stroop improvement was greater after PTCT than PT (−6.9; −13.0, −0.8). Complementing physical training with EFs training is not essential for promotion of gait speed. For EF’s, complementing physical training with targeted cognitive training provides additional benefit.

Background: Physical activity is crucial to maintain older adults' health and functioning, but the health benefits of particular activity intensities remain unclear. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to peruse the distribution of physical activity, and to investigate the associations of particular physical activity intensities with body composition and physical function among older adults. Methods: The sample comprised of 293 community-dwelling sedentary or at most moderately active older adults (42% men, mean age 74 ± 4 years). Physical activity was measured with a hip-worn tri-axial accelerometer over seven consecutive days, and investigated in detailed intensity range and in categories of sedentary, light and moderate-tovigorous activity. Fat percent and appendicular lean mass were measured with DXA. Physical function was assessed by six-minutes walking test (6-min walk), maximal walking speed over 10 m (10-m walk) and Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB). Associations were estimated with partial correlation adjusted for sex and age. Results: Participants spent on average 602 min per day sedentary, 210 min in light activity and 32 min in moderate-tovigorous activity. Light and moderate-to-vigorous activity were negatively associated with fat percent (r = − 0.360 and r = − 0.384, respectively, p < 0.001 for both), and positively with SPPB, 10-m walk and 6-min walk results (r = 0.145-0.279, p < 0.01, for light and r = 0.220-0.465, p < 0.001, for moderate-to-vigorous activity). In detailed investigation of the intensity range, associations of physical activity with fat percent, 6-min walk and 10-m walk were statistically significant from very light intensity activity onward, whereas significant associations between physical activity and SPPB were observed mostly at higher end of the intensity range. Sedentary time was positively associated with fat percent (r = 0.251, p < 0.001) and negatively with 6-min walk (r = − 0.170, p < 0.01). Conclusion: Perusing the physical activity intensity range revealed that, among community-dwelling sedentary or at most moderately active older adults, physical activity of any intensity was positively associated with lower fat percent and higher walking speed over long and short distances. These findings provide additional evidence of the importance of encouraging older adults to engage in physical activity of any intensity. More intervention studies are required to confirm the health benefits of light-intensity activity.

Background: Personality reflects relatively stable and pervasive tendencies in feeling, thinking and behaving. While previous studies have found higher extraversion and lower neuroticism to be linked to higher self-reported physical activity levels, larger studies using accelerometer-measured physical activity are lacking. This study investigated the cross-sectional associations of extraversion and neuroticism with both accelerometer-measured and self-reported physical activity and the role of these personality traits in possible discrepancies between these two measures of physical activity among Finnish adults. Methods: Two community-dwelling samples were used in this study: a) 47-55-yr-old women (n = 1098) and b) 70-85-yr-old women and men (n = 314). In both samples, extraversion and neuroticism were assessed by the 19-item short form of the Eysenck Personality Inventory. Physical activity was assessed with hip-worn tri-axial accelerometers and self-reported questions. Regression analyses were adjusted by age, BMI and education. Results: In the middle-aged women, neuroticism was negatively associated with accelerometer-measured leisure time moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (β = −.07, p = .036) and with self-reported physical activity (β = −.08, p = .021), while extraversion was positively associated with self-reported physical activity (β = .10, p = .005). No associations of extraversion or neuroticism with physical activity were found in the older men and women. Older adults who scored high in neuroticism reported less physical activity than what was measured by accelerometers (β = −.12, p = .039). Extraversion was not associated with discrepancy between self-reported and accelerometermeasured leisure time physical activity in either sample.

Background Executive functions underlie self-regulation and are thus important for physical activity and adaptation to new situations. The aim was to investigate, if yearlong physical and cognitive training (PTCT) had greater effects on physical activity among older adults than physical training (PT) alone, and if executive functions predicted physical activity at baseline, after six (6m) and twelve months (12m) of the interventions, one-year post-intervention follow-up and an extended follow-up during COVID-19 lockdown. Methods Data from a single-blinded, parallel-group randomized controlled trial (PASSWORD-study, ISRCTN52388040) were utilized. Participants were 70–85 years old community-dwelling men and women from Jyväskylä, Finland. PT (n = 159) included supervised resistance, walking and balance training, home-exercises and self-administered moderate activity. PTCT (n = 155) included PT and cognitive training targeting executive functions on a computer program. Physical activity was assessed with a one-item, seven-scale question. Executive functions were assessed with color-word Stroop, Trail Making Test (TMT) B-A and Letter Fluency. Changes in physical activity were modeled with multinomial logistic models and the impact of executive functions on physical activity with latent change score models. Results No significant group-by-time interaction was observed for physical activity (p>0.1). The subjects were likely to select an activity category higher than baseline throughout the study (pooled data: B = 0.720–1.614, p<0.001–0.046). Higher baseline Stroop predicted higher physical activity through all subsequent time-points (pooled data: B = 0.011–0.013, p = 0.015–0.030). Higher baseline TMT B–A predicted higher physical activity at 6m (pooled data: B = 0.007, p = 0.006) and during COVID-19 (B = 0.005, p = 0.030). In the PT group, higher baseline Letter Fluency predicted higher physical activity at 12m (B = -0.028, p = 0.030) and follow-up (B = -0.042, p = 0.002). Conclusions Cognitive training did not have additive effects over physical training alone on physical activity, but multicomponent training and higher executive function at baseline may support adaptation to and maintenance of a physically active lifestyle among older adults.

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