Healthy Pathways
Association between Physical Activity and Successful Aging over Ten Years
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Bamini Gopinath
We prospectively examined the relationship between physical activity and successful aging (determined through a multi-domain approach). 1,584 adults aged forty-nine plus years who were free of cancer, coronary artery disease, and stroke at baseline were followed over ten years. Participants provided details of the performance of moderate or vigorous activities, which were used to calculate total metabolic equivalents (METs) minutes per week. Successful aging status was determined through interviewer-administered questionnaire and was defined as the absence of: disability, depressive symptoms, cognitive impairment, respiratory symptoms, and chronic diseases (e.g. cancer, coronary artery disease). After ten years, 249 (15.7%) participants had aged successfully. After multivariable adjustment, participants in the highest level of total physical activity (≥5000 MET minutes/week) compared to those in the lowest level of total physical activity (<1000 MET minutes/week) had two-fold greater odds of aging successfully than suboptimal aging: OR 2.08 (95% CI 1.12-3.88). Older adults who engaged in total physical activity levels several times higher than the current recommended minimum level of 600 MET minutes/week had a greater likelihood of aging successfully over ten years. These findings suggest that increasing activity levels could be a successful strategy in reaching old age disease-free and fully functional.
Identification of Older Adult Barriers to Active Aging
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Ellen Driber-Hassall, John Bishop
As the general health of older adults continues to improve over time due to advances in health and wellness, aging may mark declines in older adult activity which may exacerbate deterioration in physical and cognitive health, as well as social support networks. Accordingly, barriers to activity, either perceived or actual, may intensify these environments, thereby impacting lifestyles of the aged and compound an already precarious relationship between activity and quality of life. The methodology employed a two-step approach to data gathering. Older adults were polled and asked to list one personal barrier they face about engaging in activity/exercise. Following analysis of these data, a new survey instrument was developed, piloted, and administered to five older adult groups. Results included five additional themes older adults identified as barriers to activity. These themes included: attitude, illness or disease, disability or impairment, cultural differences, and lack of interest or apathy. This research corroborates both the need for proactive planning and complete understanding of theses barriers’ impacts on society by decision makers and those working with older adults.
Aging, Embodiment, and Sports
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Michelle Silver
In sports, everything can change in the blink of an eye. Elite athletes can go from being the best in the world one day to out of the game the next, and most athletes' careers are over by the time they reach their mid-thirties. The physical decline that coincides with their athletic "retirement" can shatter their personal, professional, and social identities. For this study, I conducted interviews with masters and retired elite athletes, coaches, and people who have spent decades working in the world of sports. I draw from theoretical work on embodiment to examine corporeal decline and adaptation to retirement among athletes. Findings illustrate how physical decline and significant role transitions influence social identity, ultimately demonstrating that the loss of athletic identity has important implications for aging societies.
Feasibility and Efficacy of the Chair Exercise Program for Fall Prevention
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Seung-Yeon Lee, Young-Shin Won, Hyu-Kyoung Park
The aim of this study was to develop a twelve-week chair exercise program and to study the feasibility and efficacy of this exercise program on SFT in elderly. The subjects were fifteen elderly (eight females, seven males) aged seventy years and above. They participated in ‘fall prevention exercise class’ from K community center. The fifty-minute combined the chair exercise program included: full body stretching (15min); lower body (hip adductors, quadriceps/femoris, hamstrings, psoas muscles) resistance exercise (25min); walking variation (5min); and cool-down exercise (5min) was performed 1 time per week for 12 weeks. Evaluation of the chair exercise program was conducted Pre-Post Test of three factors of SFT (lower strength, lower flexibility, agility/dynamic balance). The test data were analyzed by paired t-test of SPSS/PC ver. 21.0. Results include: lower strength had significant differences between pre and post test (t = - 5.1235, n = 14, p=.001); lower flexibility had significant differences between pre and post training (t = - 2.3659, n = 14, p=.033); dynamic agility, had significant differences between pre and post training (t = 3.1500, n = 14, p=.007). The chair exercise program has a positive effect on improving muscle strength and flexibility and dynamic agility of lower limbs. This program has shown a high improvement in terms of the effect size calculation.
