Impact of Resistance Training on the Senior Fitness Test

Abstract

The number of people 65 years of age and older is increasing. It is important to determine the optimal resistance training program that will help maintain functional fitness. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of two different resistance training programs on the results of the Senior Fitness Test in an attempt to determine the most effective exercise prescription to improve functional fitness. METHODS: Eighteen subjects with an average age of 75.72± 1.94 were randomly assigned to one of three groups including: 1. Control (CON), 2. Training Group I (TGI), and 3. Training Group II (TGII). TGI performed two sets of 12–15 repetitions of eight different resistance training exercises and TGII performed two sets of 8–10 repetitions of the same eight different resistance training exercises three days per week. The Senior Fitness Test includes: 1. 30-second chair stand (assess lower body strength), 2. 30-second arm curl (assess upper body strength), 3. 2- minute step in place (assess aerobic capacity), 4. sit and reach (assess lower body flexibility), 5. back scratch (assess upper body flexibility), and 6. 8 foot up and go (assess motor agility and balance). The three groups were equal at baseline. A multivariate analysis of variance was used to examine differences after 12 weeks. RESULTS: Data are presented as mean±SEM.TableCONCLUSION: TGII performed better than the other two groups on the 2-minute step in place test and the sit-and-reach test. There was a trend for TGII to perform better on all six of the functional fitness tests. The results would suggest that it is important to have apparently healthy older adults perform resistance training at a more intense level than usually suggested by personal trainers.