EXERCISE FOR THE ELDERLY WITH APPLIED EXERCISE HANDBOOK TO PROMOTE PHYSICAL FITNESS AT KHAO SAM YOD MUNICIPALITY, LOPBURI PROVINCE

Abstract

This study aimed to 1) design and develop an exercise manual for the elderly using an adapted exercise approach to promote physical fitness, and 2) examine the effects of implementing exercise activities based on the manual on the physical fitness of elderly individuals. The sample consisted of 20 elderly participants who engaged in a structured physical activity program for eight weeks, three sessions per week, with each session lasting one hour.

The research instruments included 1) an exercise manual for the elderly incorporating adapted exercises to enhance physical fitness, and 2) a physical fitness assessment form designed by the Department of Health to evaluate fall risk in the elderly. Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and paired t-tests to determine the statistical significance of differences in physical fitness scores before and after the intervention.The findings revealed that: (1) The developed exercise manual demonstrated strong content validity, with a Content Validity Index (CVI) of 0.94, and high reliability, with a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.84. (2) There were statistically significant improvements (p-value < 0.05) in the average scores of all physical fitness components after the intervention, compared to the pre-intervention scores.Recommendation: It is recommended that similar physical activity promotion programs for the elderly be extended to other communities in order to enhance health and reduce the risk of falls among the aging population.