Multicomponent exercise for physical fitness of community-dwelling elderly women

Abstract

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to identify whether a 4-week multicomponent exercise program could improve the level of physical fitness of community-dwelling elderly women. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-two healthy community-dwelling elderly women were randomly allocated to either an experimental or a control group. Experimental subjects performed a multicomponent exercise program that consisted of balance, strengthening, and stretching exercises for 4 weeks, whereas the control subjects did not perform any specific exercise. The subjects’ level of physical fitness was assessed prior to and after training using the Senior Fitness Test which assesses muscle strength, flexibility, dynamic balance/agility, aerobic endurance, and body composition. [Results] Subjects in the experimental group showed significant improvements in lower and upper body strength, lower and upper body flexibility, dynamic balance/agility following training, but not in aerobic endurance or body composition. Significant group differences were shown in lower and upper body strength, lower body flexibility, and dynamic balance/agility. [Conclusion] The results suggest that a multicomponent training program that consists of balance, strengthening, and stretching exercises is a relevant intervention for the improvement of the level of physical fitness of community-dwelling elderly women.

Peer Review #3 of "Pilates versus resistance training on trunk strength and balance adaptations in older women: a randomized controlled trial (v0.2)"

“…However, our results showed a significant improvement in the TUG test in both the Pilates and the Muscular groups. These results are in line with previous Pilates (19,(49)(50)(51) and traditional resistance training programs (13,52). One possible explanation for these dynamic balance improvements may be the increase in lower limb and abdominal strength and the improved postural control (19).…”

Treinamento Multicomponente Melhora a Aptidão Funcional E Controle Glicêmico De Idosos Com Diabetes Tipo 2

“…No teste arm curl foi verificado aumento na força funcional de membros superiores, o que também foi constatado em outros estudos com idosos 11,25 . Por outro lado, no teste chair stand, não foi observado melhora significativa.…”

Determination of functional fitness age in women aged 50 and older

“…Under this perspective, Rikli and Jones20, 21, 22, 23, 24 build on the construction and validation of the Senior Fitness Test (SFT) battery, a set of tests resulted to be relevant for the functional fitness in the elderly and that has been used in other studies 25, 26. The SFT battery assesses lower body strength (30 s chair stand test (CS)), upper body strength (arm curl test (AC)), aerobic endurance (6-min walk test or the 2-min step test (ST) when space limitations), lower limb flexibility (chair sit-and-reach test (CSR)), and upper limb flexibility (back scratch test (BS)).…”