EFFECTS OF 12-WEEK GYM EXERCISE TRAINING ON FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY AMONG ELDERLY ADULTS

Abstract

The population of the world is aging along with the increase in life expectancy among the elderly. Approximately one-third of persons aged 65 or older are physically inactive, which leads to various medical conditions and increased health care costs, incurred to treat these medical conditions. However health care expenses may be reduced by regular physical activity. This thesis was a part of the fitness training project for seniors in the municipality of Nakkila in Western Finland, the aim of which was to maintain and/or improve the well-being and physical functioning of elderly individuals by means of exercises, in order to prolong their capability of living at home. The purpose of this study was to find out how 12-week gym exercise training held in Nakkila fitness center affected walking speed and hand grip strength of elderly adults. In this study a descriptive non-experimental research method with qualitative and quantitative data collection was used. The study covered seven elderly adults participating in a one-hour instructor-led gym exercise session two times per week for 12-week period. Pre- and post-programme data were obtained through structured and semi-structured interviews and functional measurements: Isometric Hand Grip test and Ten-Meter-Walk test. Structured interviews and functional measurements were evaluated by descriptive analysis and inferential statistical analysis using Tixel statistical software package. Significant difference was determined using paired two tailed t-test. Statistical significance was accepted for all tests at a value of p ˂ 0,05. Semi-structure interviews were examined by deductive content analysis. The study results indicated that after the 12-week intervention, there were no statistically significant changes in hand grip strength and walking speed of the study participants. However the examinees reported improvements in balance, mobility, pain level, muscle strength, functional performance on daily activities and overall physical condition. In conclusion, the 12-week training programme used in this study was not effective for producing significant benefits to the study participants’ hand grip strength and walking speed. Exercise intervention utilized in this study was not considered to be feasible in community-dwelling elderly examinees due to insignificant results. Hence further studies with a larger sample size are required.