The Effects of Home Exercise on Muscle Strength, Physical Balance and Gait of Community-Dwelling Elderly Women

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of home exercise on muscle strength, physical balance and gait of community-dwelling elderly women. The subjects consisted of a group of 12 healthy women (aged 68.0 ± 4.1 yrs) performing 3-month home exercise (training group), and a control group of 7 women (aged 69.0 ± 3.7 yrs). All subjects completed the tests, including knee extension and flexion strength, functional balance scale, functional reach, postural sway, maximal gait speed and 6 minutes distance, before and after exercise. The exercise, composed of 10 resistance exercises with free weight in sitting or standing, was performed at RPE 15 in 8 or 10 repetitions (1 set) per one exercise. Exercise protocol was 2 or 3 sets of 4 or 5 exercises a day, 2 or 3 days a week, over 3 months. The training group showed significant improvements in functional reach, maximal gait speed (p<0.01), functional balance scale results (p<0.05), and 6 minutes distance, but no change in muscle strength and postural sway. The control group exhibited an improvement in 6 minutes distance. The results revealed the effectiveness of the home exercise in improving functional balance and gait speed of community-dwelling elderly women. © 1998, The Society of Physical Therapy Science. All rights reserved.