Relatório de Estágio: Diferentes programas de exercício físico em idosos

Abstract

Nowadays, the world's population is growing old, so there is a need for solutions that improve quality of life in this population and allow them to maintain their independence (WHO, 2015). The current evidence reinforces the fundamental role of physical activity (PA) and physical exercise (PE) in the course of aging, because of its influence at systemic and macro levels, being associated with the improvement and maintenance of physical function, cognitive capacity and prevention of chronic diseases (Ahlskog et al., 2011; Durstine et al., 2013; Warburton et al., 2006). The objective of this profissional internship was to apply the theoretical knowledge acquired in the first year of the master's degree and to verify the efficacy of a 9-month multi-component training and 9-month strength program in older adults community-dwellers. After 9 months of training, subjects who participated in multicomponent groups and had an attendance of at least 70%, achieved significant improvements in physical and functional fitness (p <0.05); the subjects participating in muscular resistance training group, with attendance of at least 70% obtained improvements in most strength tests (p <0.05). In contrast, in control group, it was observed the decline of functionality resulting in incapacity to perform the functional tests. In all groups, no significant changes in body composition were found. In summary, our results demonstrate that physical exercise is feasible and shows benefits in this type of population. The adequacy of the type of training, in order to achieve the desired objective may improve the physical condition and help maintaining independence enhancing quality of life.