Relationship between Physical Elements and Locomotive Ability in Elderly
Onishi F †*, Sato H *, Watanabe I *, Iida Y *, Hirose N†: *National Strength andConditioning Association Japan, Nagareyama, Chiba, Japan., †Waseda University,Shinjuku, Tokyo, Japan.
Context: Locomotive abilities such as walking speed and/or step length in elderlyis shown to be related to the length of health expectancy. Walking is a complex
movement involving several systems, primarily musculoskeletal and nervous
systems, and investigating their relationship with locomotive ability may help
develop the effective training program to improve such ability. Our purpose is toreveal the physical elements related to the locomotive ability in elderly byconducting the series of tests that measures physical fitness including locomotiveability.
Design: Cross-sectional study. Participants were over 65 years old who have norestrictions to perform physical activity. All the measurement was done in indoors.
Setting: All works were conducted in a strength and conditioning room.
Subjects: Twenty-one elderly (72.4±4.0 years old; 8 men and 13 female) had
participated in the study.
Interventions: Maximum walking speed (MWS) and 2-step test (maximumdistance (2STMD) and 2-step score) were measured to determine participant’s
locomotive ability. In addition, we conducted a series of tests to determine thephysical fitness elements that may be related to the locomotive ability are; bodycomposition (body weight, body fat percentage, muscle mass from individualparts), flexibility (sit-and-reach (SR), hip extension), lower-body strength (chairstand test), lower-body power (broad jump). Muscle mass is standardized withsubject’s height. In order to exclude the influence of age width in the result, partial
correlation coefficient with age as a control variable was calculated and thecorrelation of each corresponding value was examined. P value was set at 0.05.
Main Outcome Measures: We examined the variables that are related to thelocomotive ability.
Results: Significant positive correlations were found between following
measurements related to the locomotive abilities; 2STMD and muscle mass fromindividual parts (r = 0.547-0.653, p = 0.002-0.013), 2STMD and MWS (r = 0.459 p= 0.042), and MWS and broad jump (r = 0.607, p = 0.005). Significant negative
correlations were found between following measurements related to the locomotiveability; 2STMD and SR (r = -0.564, p = 0.010). In addition, significant positive
correlations were found between SR and 1-leg chair stand test from right and left
leg (r = 0.488, p = 0.029 and r = 0.454, p = 0.045, respectively),
Conclusion: From our results, it was suggested that powerful movement such asbroad jump is moderately related to the locomotive ability, especially walking
speed. Also, the positive relationship between SR and 1-leg chair stand test score
implies the decreased hip range of motion and the lack of postural control thatsuggest the deficiency of gluteus muscle activation. To improve locomotive ability
in elderly, they may need to improve flexibility and balance in addition to themuscle strength, suggesting the importance of strength and conditioning program.