(PS10-4) Somatic and Physical Activity Outcomes from an 8-week Exercise Program with Black Older Adults

Abstract Text:

Introduction: Physical activity (PA) is a key contributor to mental and physical well-being. Older adults experience several barriers to engaging in regular PA, such as limited knowledge of how to engage in PA, reduced access to facilities, and limited time and resources. Black older adults experience additional barriers to PA, such as systemic under-resourcing, exposure to environmental stressors, and chronic health conditions that make sustained PA more difficult. Thus, interventions are needed to improve PA that are tailored for this specific population. We developed a novel online platform, or the Healthy Activity Improves Lives (HAIL) platform to support PA based on focus groups with older, Black adults and feedback from community champions. We then implemented the HAIL platform along with an 8-week evidence-based exercise program, or the Fit&Strong! (F&S!) Program, in an open pilot trial in two predominantly Black churches in the Greater Boston Area. We examine the somatic and physical activity outcomes.
 

Methods: Participants (N=36) were enrolled in a 20-week study consisting of the 8-week, F&S! program, or exercise classes (90 minutes, 3 days/week) led by a trained exercise instructor in tandem with the HAIL online platform, followed by a 3-month follow-up. At baseline, Week-8, and Week-20 participants completed a test of physical strength and endurance (Timed-Stand Test), somatic well-being assessments (Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index; WOMAC) and were instructed to wear an actigraphy watch (ActiGraph GT9X Link) for a week to track their daily step-count. Linear-mixed effects models were employed to analyze changes in these outcomes.
 

Results: The WOMAC improved significantly from baseline to Week-8 (Mdiff=-3.23, 95% CI[30.41, 38.74) p = .026, and from baseline to the 3-month follow-up (Mdiff = -4.32, 95% CI [29.27, 37.59]) p = .002. Similarly, the Timed-Stand Test improved significantly from baseline to the 3-month follow-up (Mdiff= 2.0, 95% CI [11.21, 13.63]) p = .003. No significant difference was observed in daily step count between baseline, Week-8, and Week-20.
 

Discussion: Results show improvement in somatic and physical strength among Black older adults following the F&S! Program in tandem with the HAIL platform; however, there was no difference in daily-step count. This may be due to the actigraphy device malfunctioning (i.e., stopped working during data collection), participants requiring assistive walking devices (i.e., canes) and health conditions that may interfere with extended physical activity (i.e., dizziness, hip injuries). Future studies should continue to examine facilitators to improve somatic and physical activity outcomes among Black older adults, with emphasis on multimodal measures