Greater physical activity of an aerobic nature ( categorized by a variety of methods ) was associated with higher functional status ( expressed by a host of outcome measures ) in older age .
For functional independence , moderate ( and high ) levels of physical activity appeared effective in conferring a reduced risk ( odds ratio ~0.5 ) of functional limitations or disability .
Limitation in higher level performance outcomes was reduced ( odds ratio ~0.5 ) with vigorous ( or high ) activity with an apparent dose-response of moderate through to high activity .
Exercise training interventions ( including aerobic and resistance ) of older adults showed improvement in physiological and functional measures , and suggestion of longer-term reduction in incidence of mobility disability .
A relatively high level of physical activity was related to better cognitive function and reduced risk of developing dementia ; however , there were mixed results of the effects of exercise interventions on cognitive function indices .
Conclusions There is a consistency of findings across studies and a range of outcome measures related to functional independence ; regular aerobic activity and short-term exercise programmes confer a reduced risk of functional limitations and disability in older age .
Although a precise characterization of a minimal or effective physical activity dose to maintain functional independence is difficult , it appears moderate to higher levels of activity are effective and there may be a threshold of at least moderate activity for significant outcomes
Background The purpose was to conduct systematic review s of the relationship between physical activity of healthy community-dwelling older ( > 65 years ) adults and outcomes of  functional limitations , disability , or loss of independence .
Postponed development of disability in elderly runners: a 13-year longitudinal study.
BACKGROUND The magnitude and duration of the benefit of running and other aerobic exercise on  disability and mortality in elderly persons are not well understood . We sought to quantify the benefits of aerobic exercise , including running , on disability and mortality in elderly persons and to examine whether morbidity can be compressed into later years of life by regular exercise . METHODS A 13-year prospect i ve cohort study of 370 members of a runners ' club for persons aged 50 and older and 249 control subjects initially aged 50 to 72 years ( mean , 59 years ) , with annual ascertainment of the Health Assessment Question  naire  disability score , noting any deaths and their causes . Linear mixed models were used to compute postponement in disability , and survival analysis was conducted to determine the time to and causes of death . RESULTS Significantly ( P<.001 ) lower disability levels in runners ' club members vs controls and in ever runners vs never runners were sustained for at least 13 years . Reaching a Health Assessment Question naire disability level of 0.075 was postponed by 8.7 ( 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] , 5.5 - 13.7 ) years in runners ' club members vs controls . Running club membership and participation in other aerobic exercise protected against mortality ( rate ratio , 0.36 [ 95 % CI , 0.20 - 0.65 ] and 0.88 [ 95 % CI , 0.77 - 0.99 ] , respectively ) , while male sex and smoking were detrimental ( rate ratio , 2.4 [ 95 % CI , 1.4 - 4.2 ] and 2.2 [ 95 % CI , 1.1 - 4.6 ] , respectively ) . Controls had a 3.3 times higher rate of death than runners ' club members , with higher death rates in every disease category . Accelerated rates of disability and mortality were still not seen in the runners ' club members ; true compression of morbidity was not yet observable through an average age of 72 years . CONCLUSION Running and other aerobic exercise in elderly persons protect against disability and early mortality , and are associated with prolongation of a disability-free life
Greater physical activity of an aerobic nature ( categorized by a variety of methods ) was associated with higher functional status ( expressed by a host of outcome measures ) in older age .
For functional independence , moderate ( and high ) levels of physical activity appeared effective in conferring a reduced risk ( odds ratio ~0.5 ) of functional limitations or disability .
Limitation in higher level performance outcomes was reduced ( odds ratio ~0.5 ) with vigorous ( or high ) activity with an apparent dose-response of moderate through to high activity .
Exercise training interventions ( including aerobic and resistance ) of older adults showed improvement in physiological and functional measures , and suggestion of longer-term reduction in incidence of mobility disability .
A relatively high level of physical activity was related to better cognitive function and reduced risk of developing dementia ; however , there were mixed results of the effects of exercise interventions on cognitive function indices .
Conclusions There is a consistency of findings across studies and a range of outcome measures related to functional independence ; regular aerobic activity and short-term exercise programmes confer a reduced risk of functional limitations and disability in older age .
Although a precise characterization of a minimal or effective physical activity dose to maintain functional independence is difficult , it appears moderate to higher levels of activity are effective and there may be a threshold of at least moderate activity for significant outcomes
Background The purpose was to conduct systematic review s of the relationship between physical activity of healthy community-dwelling older ( > 65 years ) adults and outcomes of  functional limitations , disability , or loss of independence .