Physical Activity Adherence Related to Body Composition and Physical Fitness in Spanish Older Adults: 8 Years-Longitudinal EXERNET-Study.

Introduction: The multiple benefits of physical activity (PA) compared to the current lack of adherence to this behavior in older people makes it necessary to identify the factors related to its long-term dropout, therefore, the aim of this study was: (i) to study the evolution of behavior change for PA through stages of change (SoC) after 8 years and, to identify the associated factors related to the worsening of SoC for PA. Methods: A total of 714 Spanish older adults (>65 years) participated in the Longitudinal elderly EXERNET study 8 years follow-up. SoC for PA from Transtheoretical model of behavior change (TTM), body composition [BMI, fat mass, lean mass, waist circumference (WC), and hip circumference (HC)] and physical fitness (EXERNET battery fitness tests) were recorded. A multivariate binary logistic regression model was used to identify the potential predictive factors of worsening SoC for PA. Results: Three hundred and sixty participants (50.4%) worsening their SoC for PA after 8 years. Predictors factors associated with worsening of SoC were: HC (OR = 1.022; 95% CI: 1.001, 1.044), Lower body strength (OR = 0.940; 95% CI: 0.887, 0.997) and aerobic endurance at the 6 min-walk test (OR = 0.997; 95% CI: 0.995, 0.999). Conclusion: This study highlights that we need to identify adults with high HC, lower body strength and lower aerobic endurance to design a tailored PA program. Identifying the determinants of losing adherence to PA will help in the creation, design, and evaluation of exercise programs with the goal of reducing older adults' drop-outs rates.

Psychosocial factors related to physical activity in frail and prefrail elderly people.

BACKGROUND: Increased physical activity (PA) is a very important factor in a healthy aging lifestyle. Psychosocial factors have also a main role in the initiation and maintenance of this behavior, but nowadays its implications for frailty elderly people are unknown, therefore, the aim of this study was to identify the psychosociological variables of behavior change that influence the practice of (PA) in frail and prefrail elderly. METHODS: A total of 103 frail and pre-frail elderly people (72 females) participated in this cross-sectional study, on the framework of the EXERNET-Elder3.0 project. Age ranged from 68-94 years (mean = 80.4 ± 5.9 years). Individualized face-to-face interviews according to the constructs of the Transtheoretical Model of Change (TTM) [(decisional balance (DB) and self-efficacy (SE)], social support (SS) (family and friends) and outcome expectations (OE) were administered to all participants. RESULTS: Significant differences were found in DB, perceived benefits (PBn), SE, family-related SS and OE as a function of stages of change (SoC) (p < 0.005), but no significant were found in perceived barriers (PBrr) (p = 0.259) and friends-related SS (p = 0.068). According to the Scheffé post-hoc test, those in advanced SoC (Action-Maintenance), scored higher than those in lower SoC (Precontemplation-Contemplation and Preparation). CONCLUSION: The scores obtained from the study variables differed according to the SoC, supporting the external validity for the use of the TTM in frailty elderly. Further research is needed to determine the impact of PBrr and friends-related SS on this people, as well as to identify the validity of this model in the long-term in this population.

Differences among Sociodemographic Variables, Physical Fitness Levels, and Body Composition with Adherence to Regular Physical Activity in Older Adults from the EXERNET Multicenter Study.

The aim of this study was to explore the differences among between adherence to physical activity (PA) and sociodemographic variables, body composition, and physical fitness levels in older adults (>65 years). A number of 2712 participants (2086 female; 76.92%) ranging from 65 to 92 years, participated in the study. Stages of change (SoC) for PA from the transtheoretical model of change (TTM), together with different sociodemographic variables, physical fitness tests (Senior Fitness Test), and waist and hip circumferences were evaluated. Significant differences were found in age, gender, educational level, current income, physical fitness test, and body composition (all of them, p < 0.05), according to the different SoC. Greater adherence to PA practice (action and maintenance stages) was related to better academic level, higher economic income, the male gender, better results in the physical fitness test, and healthier anthropometrics perimeters. Future research is needed to identify the relationship between these variables longitudinally.