Name: a training program using an agility ladder for community-dwelling older adults
Uploaded: 2020-03-07T13:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about A Training Program Using an Agility Ladder for Community-Dwelling Older Adults at JoVE.com

This study was funded by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel of Brazil (CAPES- #1800789).

The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) under Protocol Number 2479761. Written informed consent was obtained in-person from all study participants. Sixteen participants of both sexes were recruited from the community of the metropolitan region of Campinas by searching the database of the Applied Kinesiology Laboratory (AKL). The inclusion criteria were 1) individuals aged 60 and older; 2) ability to answer the questionnaires used in this study; 3) ability to walk in...

<ol>
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Several agility training programs are used for different populations, including sports teams4, children12, and older people6,10. These programs include square stepping exercises10,11 like the sequences described in the present study and can significantly improve the overall physical fitness of older adults by decreasing the risk of falls, fractures, immobili...

Being active while aging can optimize opportunities to improve physical, social, and mental health, enabling older people to participate actively in society1. Older adults should be payed attention to because of the consequences of aging2. People worldwide are living longer, and life expectancy is greater than 70 years for the first time in history. The number of individuals aged 60 years or older is increasing rapidly, and the health of these populations is usually poor. Aging impairs physical functions, mental capacity, and social interactions as a direct result of diseases or syndromes2.
Decrease in physical function may lead to falls, fractures, less access to health care, depression, and poor quality of life. Agility is crucial to prevent falls and maintain independence in older people. Sheppard and Young3 reported that agility involved &#34;whole-body movements in different directions in response to a stimulus.&#34;
Most studies evaluate agility in high-performance athletes4, although a few studies assess this parameter in older adults. Agility training for older people comprises preplanned gait adaptability training and reaction training (i.e., response to a signal)5. Liu-Ambrose et al.6,7 found that agility training improved postural stability, balance, and balance confidence, and decreased the risk of falls in older people. Moreover, this type of training is integrative and improves cognitive functions (e.g., perception, mental flexibility, and working memory) as well as neuromuscular and cardiovascular functions8,9.
Agility training is characterized by a set of exercise drills and can be automated. However, a physical trainer/instructor is necessary to create and teach the drills and indicate the right moment to increase the level of difficulty. Some studies found that step training improved physical fitness (e.g., balance, agility, lower limb strength and power, and decreased risk of falls) and cognitive function (e.g., choice stepping reaction time, inhibitory action, and executive function)5,10,11. The present study uses an agility ladder as a cost-effective instrument to assess the effects of preplanned gait training on the physical fitness of independent community-dwelling older adults.
The agility ladder used in the present study was previously employed to train school children and athletes12,13. The ladder had a length of 4.8 meters and 12 transverse rungs and was drawn on the floor using a 2 cm wide adhesive tape (Figure 1). Building a ladder on the floor avoided interruptions during training12 and decreased the risk of injuries. The study population was healthy, with a mean age of 66.9 &#177; 5.0 years, and lived independently in a community setting. The participants received 30 minute training sessions twice a week for 14 weeks.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>Bluetooth speaker</td>
			<td>JBL</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to time all protocol and signal the 30 s of each subset</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Chair</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used on assessments</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Clipboard</td>
			<td>Tilibra</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to support documents</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Crepe Tape of 2cm</td>
			<td>Dexter</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to create the agility ladder on the floor</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Measuring Tape</td>
			<td>Stakley</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to measure assessments distance</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Pen</td>
			<td>Bic</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to note data</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Saucer Cone</td>
			<td>Kipsta</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used on assessments</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Stowatch</td>
			<td>Vollo</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>Used to time assessments results</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Sulfite Paper</td>
			<td>Chamex</td>
			<td>-</td>
			<td>used to write all data</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

a training program using an agility ladder for community-dwelling older adults

Aging impairs physical and cognitive functions and limits daily activities. Agility training can improve or maintain physical functioning in older people. The purpose of this study is to report the physical fitness benefits of a training program for independent community-dwelling older adults using an agility ladder. Each training session lasted approximately 30 minutes, and the benefits were achieved with two sessions per week for 14 weeks. Training was timed and involved four different drills and varying levels of difficulty through time. The exercises were performed at the School of Physical Education of the University of Campinas, S&#227;o Paulo state, Brazil. The study participants (n = 16; mean age of 66.9 &#177; 5.0 years) were instructed to perform the exercises as quickly as possible without making mistakes and were assisted by a physical trainer when they made mistakes. Assessments were performed both before and after training using five functional tests (i.e., Illinois agility, five times sit-to-stand, timed up-and-go, walking usual speed, and one-leg stand). Although the study sample was not compared with a control group, the results indicate that training protocols using an agility ladder are easy and practical and improve physical function performance in older adults.

Sixteen male and female independent community-living older people with a mean age of 66.9 &#177; 5.0 years were enrolled in the study. The interventions and assessments were performed at the School of Physical Education of UNICAMP.
Statistical analysis was performed using Minitab 18 software. The Mann-Whitney test was used to compare the functional test results before and after training. P values smaller than 0.05 were considere...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about A Training Program Using an Agility Ladder for Community-Dwelling Older Adults at JoVE.com

A Training Program Using an Agility Ladder for Community-Dwelling Older Adults

The aim of this study is to present an agility training program for older people. The feasibility of this program is described, and the training protocol demonstrated by video imaging.

Aging impairs physical and cognitive functions and limits daily activities. Agility training can improve or maintain physical functioning in older people. ...

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