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Changes in Physical Functioning in the Active Living Every Day Program of the Active for Life Initiative®

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Abstract

Background

Physical activity can prevent or delay the onset of physical functional limitations in older adults. There are limited data that evidence-based physical activity interventions can be successfully translated into community programs and result in similar benefits for physical functioning.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to measure the effects of the Active Living Every Day program on physical functioning and physical functional limitations in a diverse sample of older adults.

Methods

As a part of the Active for Life initiative, the Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio implemented Active Living Every Day (ALED), a group-based lifestyle behavior change program designed to increase physical activity. Performance-based physical functioning tests (30-s Chair Stand Test, eight Foot Up-and-Go Test, Chair Sit-and-Reach Test, 30-Foot Walk Test) were administered to participants at baseline and posttest. Baseline to post-program changes in physical functioning and impairment status were examined with repeated measures analysis of covariance. Interactions tested whether change over time differed according to race/ethnicity, body mass index (BMI), and baseline impairment status.

Results

Participants significantly increased their performance in all four physical functioning tests. The percentage of participants classified as “impaired” according to normative data significantly decreased over time. Physical functioning improved regardless of BMI, race/ethnicity, or baseline impairment status.

Conclusions

ALED is an example of an evidenced-based physical activity program that can be successfully translated into community programs and result in significant and clinically meaningful improvements in performance-based measures of physical functioning.

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Acknowledgement

The Active for Life (AFL) initiative was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation or other institutions affiliated with the authors.

We gratefully acknowledge the many participants who took part in the Active for Life program and evaluation at the Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio. We also acknowledge the involvement and significant contribution of staff from Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio, Hamilton County Public Health, Human Kinetics, Inc, Texas A&M Health Science Center, and the University of South Carolina. We thank the National Advisory Committee for its valuable contributions to Active for Life. Finally, we thank Dr. Jessie Jones for her training and consultation in the functional fitness tests.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Sara Wilcox

  2. Hamilton County Public Health, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Stacy Wegley & Karen Schwamberger

  3. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA

    David M. Buchner

  4. Texas A & M Science Center, College Station, TX, USA

    Marcia G. Ory

  5. Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Alisa Phillips

  6. Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Princeton, New Jersey, USA

    Terry L. Bazzarre

  7. Public Health Research Center, University of South Carolina, 921 Assembly Street, Suite 318, Columbia, SC, 29208, USA

    Meghan Baruth

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  1. Meghan Baruth
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Meghan Baruth.

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Authors Notes

We do not have a financial relationship with the organization that sponsored our research. We have full control of all primary data and agree to allow the journal to review our data if requested.

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Baruth, M., Wilcox, S., Wegley, S. et al. Changes in Physical Functioning in the Active Living Every Day Program of the Active for Life Initiative®. Int.J. Behav. Med. 18, 199–208 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-010-9108-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-010-9108-7

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