The Effect of Stationary Walking on the Quality of Life of the Elderly Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Introduction: Aging has a profound effect on all the body organs and quality of life. One of the appropriate interventions is exercises such as walking. Nevertheless, the risk of falling and its complications are lower in stationary walking than walking on ground. Due to the higher life expectancy in women than men, the increasing number of elderly, and the low quality of life of women compared to men, this study aimed to assess the impact of stationary walking on the quality of life of the elderly women. Methods: In this clinical trial, 66 household elderly women covered by health centers of Maragheh were randomly selected and divided into experimental and control groups. Six weeks exercise intervention was conducted. The participants completed the quality of life questionnaire of the elderly, before and after the intervention. SPSS software was used to analyze the data. Results: Mean scores of quality of life, in various aspects of the experimental group, before and after intervention, showed significant difference; there was no statistically significant difference in the control group. In addition, there was a significant difference in the mean and standard deviation of different aspects of quality of life in pre- and post-test of experiment and control groups.Conclusion: Using regular and constant exercise program such as stationary walking can increase the quality of life of the elderly women. It can improve healthy aging and having a healthy life at this age, too. Therefore, it is recommended to have stationary walking program in daily lives of the elderly.

Keywords: Walking, Quality of life, Exercise, Aged, Women