New Year’s Resolutions…

Happy New Year. OK, so today is the day when people make symbolic gestures to make a difference in their lives; aka New Year’s Resolutions. One of these gestures typically involves ‘improving my fitness’, and as a result there is a surge of ‘new members’ to the myriad of fitness providers during the month of… Read More

Hopping Mad or Hopping Healthy!

Hopping can have health benefits according to a study reported by the Daily Telegraph (Finnigan, 2015). The Hip Hop Study from Loughborough University shows that hopping for two minutes a day improved bone mineral density in the active compared with the non-active leg of 34 men aged 65-80 years. In the Book ‘Hopscotch’ (Jaffe, 2002),… Read More

Older Adults: Outdoor Physical Activity & Self-Rated Health

Research Paper Title Outdoor physical activity and self rated health in older adults living in two regions of the US. Background Older adults spend little time outdoors and many are physically inactive. The relationship between outdoor physical activity and self rated health has not been studied in older adults. This paper aimed to assess the… Read More

Older People & Physical Activity

Older people are bombarded with advice to keep active. A cross sectional survey of 3499 Irish people aged 65 and over shows that nearly 70% of respondents manage at least 30 minutes a day of moderate intensity activity five days a week (Age and Ageing 2015, doi:10.1093/ageing/afv042). It also shows that the variables most strongly… Read More

Do Pedometers Increase Physical Activity in Older People?

A sustained increase in physical activity of older people can be achieved by consultations with a practice nurse and the use of a pedometer, research has shown. The randomised controlled trial included 298 people aged 60-75 from three UK general practices who received standard care or an intervention to increase their physical activity levels. Patients… Read More

Get of Your Backside & Lengthen your Telomeres!

Research Paper Title Stand Up for Health – Avoiding Sedentary Behaviour might lengthen your Telomeres: Secondary Outcomes from a Physical Activity RCT in Older People. Background Telomere length has been associated with a healthy lifestyle and longevity. However, the effect of increased physical activity on telomere length is still unknown. Therefore, the aim was to… Read More

Physical Activity: Prevalence Depends on Definition Used!

Research Paper Title Compliance with Different Physical Activity Recommendations and its Association with Socio-demographic Characteristics using an Objective Measure. Background In the past decades, several public health guidelines concerning physical activity have been published. This study evaluated compliance with various physical activity guidelines and examined the associations between meeting the guidelines and socio-demographic characteristics. Methods… Read More