Home-Based Circuit Training for Elderly Women

The effects of participation in a home-based strength-training program on muscular strength and muscular endurance were determined in elderly women. Ten healthy elderly (x = 66.4 yrs ±6.7 SD) females participated in 10 weeks of home-based resistance training. Following the guidance of exercise videos, which were produced specifically for this study, subjects exercised three times per week for twenty-five minutes per session. Each session involved a 3-5 minute warm-up, two rounds of a strengthening-circuit (utilizing tubing, body weight, and dumbbell exercises), and a 3-5 minute cool-down Pre- and post-intervention measures were taken of maximum handgrip strength and six muscular endurance tests (chest press, leg extension, seated row, hamstring curl, biceps curl, and triceps press-down). Dependent t-tests revealed statistically significant improvements for all six muscular endurance tests (p < 0.01), as well as dominant hand grip strength (p < 0.05). Participants also reported vast improvements in functional abilities of activities of daily living. These results demonstrate that a home-based strength training intervention can be considered a viable option for improving muscular fitness among older adults who may not be favorable to join community-based exercise programs.