Effectiveness of a Sustainable Training Program Combining Supervised Outdoor Exercise with Telecoaching on Physical Performance in Elderly People

Ignazio Leale, Valerio Giustino (), Jessica Brusa, Matteo Barcellona, Mario Barbagallo, Antonio Palma, Giuseppe Messina, Ligia J. Dominguez and Giuseppe Battaglia
Additional contact information
Ignazio Leale: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy
Valerio Giustino: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy
Jessica Brusa: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy
Matteo Barcellona: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy
Mario Barbagallo: Geriatric Unit, Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, University of Palermo, 90133 Palermo, Italy
Antonio Palma: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy
Giuseppe Messina: Department of Human Sciences and Promotion of the Quality of Life, San Raffaele University, 00144 Rome, Italy
Ligia J. Dominguez: Geriatric Unit, Department of Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, University of Palermo, 90133 Palermo, Italy
Giuseppe Battaglia: Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90144 Palermo, Italy

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 8, 1-17

Abstract: The decrease in functional abilities can negatively influence quality of life and autonomy in elderly people, and physical exercise plays a crucial role regardless of the type. Among the latter, also due to the COVID-19 pandemic, outdoor exercise and telecoaching are settings that have been widely implemented. Hence, the aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a sustainable training program combining supervised outdoor exercise with telecoaching on physical performance in elderly people. A total of 60 participants were recruited and divided into two groups: a trained group (TG) and an untrained group (UG), based on their participation in an 8-week sustainable training program consisted of five sessions/week, which included two sessions/week of supervised outdoor exercise and three sessions/week of telecoaching. Participants were evaluated before and at the end of the training program using the handgrip test, Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, short physical performance battery (SPPB), and Tinetti scale. In the TG, we found a significant improvement in the following tests: right handgrip ( p < 0.001); left handgrip ( p < 0.001); TUG ( p < 0.001); SPPB ( p = 0.01); and Tinetti scale ( p = 0.006). A detailed analysis of the SPPB and Tinetti scale showed the lack of significant changes in walking ability: gait speed ( p > 0.05) and walking parameters in the Tinetti scale ( p > 0.05). Based on our results, we suggest that a sustainable training program combining supervised outdoor exercise with telecoaching could be effective in the elderly population for improving balance capacity and strength.

Keywords: green exercise; outdoor exercise; sustainable exercise; walking program; telecoaching; body balance; postural control; older people; elderly; fall prevention; risk of falls (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/8/3254/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/8/3254/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:8:p:3254-:d:1375104

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().