Physical Activity Level Following Resistance Training in Community-Dwelling Older Adults Receiving Home Care: Results from a Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

• Main Authors: Hilde Bremseth Bårdstu, Vidar Andersen, Marius Steiro Fimland, Lene Aasdahl, Hilde Lohne-Seiler, Atle Hole Saeterbakken
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: strength training; elderly; independent living; exercise; physical behavior
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/13/6682
• ISSN: 1661-7827; 1660-4601

Older adults’ physical activity (PA) is low. We examined whether eight months of resistance training increased PA level in community-dwelling older adults receiving home care. A two-armed cluster-randomized trial using parallel groups was conducted. The included participants were >70 years and received home care. The resistance training group performed resistance training using body weight, elastic bands, and water canes twice per week for eight months. The control group was informed about the national PA guidelines and received motivational talks. The ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometer was used to estimate PA. Outcomes included total PA (counts per minute), sedentary behavior (min/day), light PA (min/day), moderate-to-vigorous PA (min/day), and steps (mean/day). Between-group differences were analyzed using multilevel linear mixed models. Twelve clusters were randomized to either resistance training (7 clusters, 60 participants) or the control group (5 clusters, 44 participants). A total of 101 participants (median age 86.0 (interquartile range 80–90) years) had valid accelerometer data and were included in the analysis. There were no statistically significant between-group differences for any of the PA outcomes after four or eight months. This study offers no evidence of increased PA level following resistance training in older adults with home care.