Support Helps Older
Adults Keep Up Exercise

Self-confidence and support from family and friends may help older adults stick with exercise for the long haul, a study in the Netherlands shows.

Actually enjoying the exercise makes a big difference, too, researchers found.

Among 96 men and women in the 18-month study, those who were more confident they could overcome obstacles, had more support for their efforts, or found activity more enjoyable were more likely to adhere to the study's exercise plan.

Dr. Martin Stevens and colleagues at the University of Groningen report the findings in the December issue of the journal Preventive Medicine.

The researchers looked at a program designed specifically to get adults between the ages of 55 and 65 years off their couches and into recreational activities, such as basketball, aerobics and badminton once a week. The investigators were trying to identify which factors separated those who stuck with the program from those who didn't.

As in other Western countries, many older adults in the Netherlands are sedentary, Stevens and his colleagues note. So figuring out what makes older people stay with or quit an exercise routine is important.

The researchers questioned participants at the start of the study about factors that might affect their exercise adherence, then again six months and 18 months later.

They found that men and women with greater "task self-efficacy," the belief that they could stick with the exercise program, or greater confidence in their general ability to overcome obstacles were more likely to stay with the program for at least six months.

The same was true of those who found the activities enjoyable. Also, participants who felt more support from the other exercisers were more likely to still be active after 18 months.

Long-term adherents also reported more support for their efforts from friends, while those in both groups said they enjoyed support from their families.

SOURCE: Preventive Medicine, December 2003.

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