Associations between objectively assessed physical activity levels and fitness and self-reported health-related quality of life in community-dwelling older adults.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies investigated the associations between health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and self-reported physical activity (PA) and/or self-reported physical fitness which are not the most reliable methods to assess PA and fitness. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the associations between HRQoL and each of objectively assessed habitual PA and physical fitness. METHODS: Eighty-five community-dwelling older adults (60-83 years) completed assessments for PA (counts/min and steps/day using accelerometers), physical fitness (six-minute walk test [6MWT] and hand-grip strength), and self-reported HRQoL (using the eight subscales of the SF-36). In adjusted logistic regression models, the upper quartile was compared against the lower three quartiles of scores on each HRQoL subscale. Results report the odds ratios that were significant in the adjusted models at P < 0.05. RESULTS: Individuals with higher PA levels assessed by counts/min were more likely to score higher on physical functioning (PF) subscale (OR = 1.90). Individuals with superior 6MWT performance were more likely to score higher on PF (OR = 1.87), role limitations due to physical problems (RP) (OR = 1.95), and vitality (VT) (OR = 1.79). Individuals with superior hand-grip strength were more likely to score higher on RP (OR = 2.37) and VT (OR = 1.83). CONCLUSIONS: Objectively assessed PA and physical fitness measures were positively associated with physical health HRQoL subscales as reported by community-dwelling older adults.

Are resistance and aerobic exercise training equally effective at improving knee muscle strength and balance in older women?

This study aimed to compare the magnitude of knee muscle strength and static and dynamic balance change in response to 8 months of progressive RE and AE training in healthy community-dwelling older women. A secondary aim was to assess the relationship between muscle strength and balance changes (up and go test (UGT), one-leg stance test, and center of pressure measures). This study was a secondary analysis of longitudinal data from a randomized controlled trial, a three-arm intervention study in older women (n=71, mean age 69.0y). The results suggest that both interventions elicited likely to almost certain improvements (using magnitude-based inference) in balance performance. Leg strength was improved after RE whereas it was unclear following AE. Improvements in strength were almost certainly moderate after RE and possibly trivial after AE, with very likely greater improvements following RE compared to AE. A large and significant negative correlation (r=-0.5; CI 90%: -0.7 to -0.2) was found between ΔUGT and change in both knee extension and knee flexion strength after 8-month RE. In conclusion, our results showed that both types of training improve balance, but RE was also effective at improving leg strength. In addition, improvements in both knee extension and flexion strength after RE appear to make an important contribution to meaningful improvements in static and dynamic balance.

Differential responses of adiposity, inflammation and autonomic function to aerobic versus resistance training in older adults.

BACKGROUND: Increased body fat, autonomic dysfunction and low-grade chronic inflammation are interrelated risk factors implicated in the etiology of several chronic conditions normally presented by older adults. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to assess the effectiveness of different training protocols on reducing body fat, improving autonomic function, and decreasing low-grade systemic inflammation in community-dwelling elderly adults. METHODS: Fifty participants (11 men, 68±5.5years) were randomly allocated into resistance or aerobic training or control groups. Evaluations were done at baseline and following the 8-month intervention period on their body composition (assessed by DXA), inflammatory biomarkers (high-sensitivity C-reactive protein [hs-CRP], tumor necrosis-alpha [TNF-α], interferon-gamma [IFN-γ], interleukins-6 and -10 [IL-6, IL-10]), lipoproteic profile, fasting glycemia, blood pressure, heart rate variability (HRV; frequency and time domains) and aerobic fitness (assessed by six-minute walk distance [6MWD]). A paired t-test was used to detect changes (%Δ=[(post-test score-pretest score)/pre-test score]×100) within groups, while between-group differences were analyzed using the one-way ANOVA or General Linear Models. RESULTS: A significant change (Δ%) both in total (-5.4±6.3% and -3.3±2.9%, respectively) and central body fat (8.9±11.3% and -4.8±4.5%) was observed in resistance and aerobic training groups, respectively; along with a change in resting systolic and diastolic blood pressures (-9.2±9.8% and -8.5±9.6%), heart rate (-4.6±6.5%), hs-CRP (-18.6±60.6%), and 6MWD (9.5±6.9%) in response to aerobic training. CONCLUSIONS: The present findings provide further evidence for the benefits of aerobic and resistance training on reducing body fat. Aerobic training was demonstrated to reduce hs-CRP and blood pressure in community-dwelling elderly participants with no serious medical conditions.