Effect of Tai Chi versus Aerobic Training on Improving Hand Grip Strength, Fatigue, and Functional Performance in Older Adults Post-COVID-19: a randomized controlled trial

Background: The recent pandemic of COVID-19 has left a wide range of after-effects on the health of older adults.The effects of the pandemic have been particularly felt in the areas of physical strength, fatigue, and functional performance.Material and methods: Fifty-four participants were allocated into three groups: Tai Chi (TC) attended 4 sessions of 60-min TC training per week for consecutive 12 weeks, Aerobic Training (AT) attended 4 sessions of 60-min aerobic training per week for 12 weeks, and Control (CON) instructed to maintain a daily routine.Hand grip strength (HGS) and Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) were used to evaluate the participants.Functional performance outcomes were determined The functional performance outcome was determined by The 30-second Chair Stand Test (CST), The 30-second Arm Curl Test (ACT), The 8-feet Up-and-Go test (TUG), and The 2 min steps.Pre-post comparisons of all outcomes in each group and comparisons between groups were analyzed using the ANOVA test with SPSS software.e191