Barriers for physical activity in older adults users of fitness zones

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate perceived barriers for physical activity in older adults while in fitness zones (FZ). Participants were 970 older adults, users of 34 out of 57 FZ in the city of Maringá, Paraná, who responded to a sociodemographic questionnaire, the mini-mental state examination and the Questionnaire on barriers for physical activity. The results indicated high indexes of perception of barriers for physical activity in FZ. Older adults with a regular/bad perception of health had fewer barriers, while males, up to 70 years old and who received more than three minimum wage pay perceived more barriers (p < 0.05) when compared to other groups, indicating the physical limitations and the fear of getting injured as the most frequent differences. We can conclude that FZ are locations that present a high number of barriers of older adults to be physically active. Moreover, older adults with a certain pro le seem to perceive more barriers for the use of FZ, with the most common justification being physical limitations and the fear of getting injured while being physically active.