The Effect of Resistance Training and Balance Training on the Gait Speed and Balance Skills in the Older Healthy Women
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| Year of publication | 2018 |
| Type | Conference abstract |
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| Description | Introduction. Falls are a well-known problem among the elderly. Recent studies focused on risk factors for falls in the elderly indicated that gait changes and poor balance ability are among the major fall risk factors. Objectives. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of resistance training, balance training and their combination on gait speed and static balance in the elderly. Patients & methods. Forty-four older women were randomly assigned to three training groups, strength group (n = 16; 67,8 years), balance group (n = 14; 67,5 years) and combination group (n = 16; 69,4 years). All groups were tested on gait speed (usual pace, 10m) and static balance on a stabilometric platform at baseline and after 9 weeks. Results. Results indicated significant improvements in gait speed in two groups with greater improvements in the strength group. However, no group difference was found in static balance performance. Conclusion. It is important to mention, the participants in this study were highly functional with no known postural or cognitive impairments. We conclude that the program of resistance exercise can be safely carried out by aging women. In another study, we will continue to investigate the effect of various types of physical activity on selected indicators related to everyday life. |
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