Exploring How Exercise Frequency Impacts Muscle Resistance and Balance in Institutionalized Seniors

Summary

The older population is the least likely to engage in regular physical activity and to meet international recommendations for performing 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week. Additionally, older adults living in care institutions tend to have even lower levels of physical activity compared to those living in the community. This physical inactivity among institutionalized older adults carries harmful consequences, such as the loss of muscle mass and strength, both of which are associated with decreased balance and an increased risk of falling, an adverse event with personal, physical, economic, social, and potentially fatal implications. Although this situation is well described in the literature, little is known about whether increasing physical activity levels from near-optimal (almost 150 minutes of physical activity per week) to optimal (more than 150 minutes per week) can influence muscle strength and balance in institutionalized older adults, and thereby reduce the burden related to falls.

This type of research is essential, as weekly frequency may be a variable to consider in the prescription of physical exercise for this population. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends using the FITT principle (Frequency, Intensity, Type, and Time) to guide exercise prescription. By adjusting these factors, individuals can tailor workouts to their specific goals and fitness levels. While attention has been given to the type of training, its intensity, and its duration, it is important to recognize that total weekly volume may be a determining factor for improvements in components of physical fitness.

Considering that this population tends to be physically inactive, incorporating physical activity two or three times per week may lead to different outcomes. While exercising twice per week may seem suboptimal, as it does not meet international guidelines, engaging in physical activity three times per week may be the minimum necessary to observe positive effects on muscle strength and balance.

Conditions

• Frequency of Treatment Protocol

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Behavioral: 2 exercise sessions (2X)

The (1) control group (2X) will receive an exercise screening checklist and 24 group training sessions, 2 times per week during a 12-week period, based on International Exercise Recommendations in Older Adults (ICFSR; Izquierdo et al., 2021). These are the recommendations commonly used for older adults.

BEHAVIORAL

Behavioral: 2 exercise sessions (3X)

The (3) experimental group (3X) will receive an exercise screening checklist and 36 group training sessions, 3 times per week during a 12-week period, based on International Exercise Recommendations in Older Adults (ICFSR; Izquierdo et al., 2021). These are the recommendations commonly used for older adults. This additional session will increase weekly exercise volume compared to the control group, also being closer to complying to the WHO International Guidelines of weekly physical activity (Bull et al., 2020)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Instituto Politécnico de Leiria

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

65 Years

Max Age

90 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-01-02

Primary Completion

2026-05-02

Completion

2026-06-02