The Effects of Nordic Walking Exercise on Physical Fitness Among Older Persons
Keywords:
Exercise, Nordic walking, Physical fitness, Older personAbstract
During the process of aging, there is a decrease in physical fitness. Exercising for physical fitness enhances daily living activities among the elderly. The Nordic Walking Exercise is a moderately intense aerobic exercise which can improve physical fitness. The purpose of this experimental research was to examine the effect of the Nordic Walking Exercise on older persons’ physical fitness. Participants included 36 older persons in Chiang Mai province, who were purposely selected and randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group, with 18 persons in each group. The experimental group was trained on how to do the Nordic Walking Exercise three times a week for twelve weeks, while those in the control group did not do this exercise. The measurement tools consisted of 1) the demographic data recording form; 2) the recording form for the four components of fitness; 3) the Nordic Walking Exercise Guidelines for older persons; 4) the Nordic Walking Exercise handbook for older persons; 5) Nordic poles; and 6) a heart rate monitor. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, and the hypotheses were tested by t-test.
The results revealed that:
- The mean of cardiorespiratory endurance, muscle strength, and flexibility in the experimental group after doing the Nordic Walking exercise was significantly higher than before doing the exercise (p < .001). However, the mean of body composition in the experimental group after doing the Nordic Walking exercise was not statistically significantly different.
- The mean of cardiorespiratory endurance and flexibility in the experimental group after doing the Nordic Walking exercise was significantly higher than that of the control group (p < .01 and p < .05, respectively). However, mean muscle strength and body composition in the experimental group were not statistically significantly different from the control group.
Nordic walking exercise can increase physical fitness, especially cardiorespiratory endurance, and flexibility. Therefore, nurses should apply this exercise to promote older persons for continuing efficient physical fitness.
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