Physical fitness according to the level of physical activity in older people: a cross-sectional analysis

Abstract

Introduction: Aging is marked by physiological changes and a decrease in physical activity. These aspects can have repercussions, namely declining functionality and increasing likelihood of adverse events. Objective: To compare performance in physical fitness tests of sufficiently and insufficiently active older people. Methods: Epidemiological population study, cross-sectional, carried out with 209 older people (58.4% women) from Aiquara/BA. Sociodemographic informa-
tion was obtained by means of interviews. Physical fitness was measured by means of the following tests: handgrip strength, chair stand, arm curl, timed up and go, sit and reach and step in place. The level of physical activity was checked by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (<150 min/week physical activity = insufficiently active). Comparisons were made using the Student t-test or Mann-Whitney U-test, according to the distribution of normality determined by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test (p ≤ 0.05). Results: We found that 51.70% of the participants were insufficiently active (men: 66.66%; women: 40.98%). In addition, insufficiently active participants of both sexes performed less well in the handgrip strength, chair stand, arm curl, timed up and go and step in place tests (p < 0.05). Moreover, insufficiently active men showed lower performance in the sit and reach test than sufficiently active men (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Insufficiently active older women and men have lower muscle strength/resistance, dynamic balance/agility and cardiorespiratory endurance. Furthermore, insufficiently active men show less flexibility than those sufficiently active.