JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Physical activity (PA) and the reduction of an inactive lifestyle positively impact physical, psychological, cognitive, and functional health over the lifespan. However, less than half of the population of older adults in Germany currently reach the PA recommendations of the World Health Organization regarding endurance training, less than a third for strength training.

Objective:

The aim of this study is to investigate implementation and effectiveness of two interventions (IT- vs. print-based) for PA promotion among initially inactive older adults over the course of nine months in a randomized trial with a cross-over design.

Methods:

At baseline, participants are randomized to one of two interventions for self-monitoring PA: (a) an IT-based intervention (50%), (b) a print-based intervention (50%). Thirty percent of those in group (a) receive a PA tracker in addition to the IT-based intervention. After the 3-months follow-up (T1), participants in both arms can choose whether they remain in their intervention arm or cross over to the other arm for the following six months (T2). Participants’ intervention preferences at baseline are measured retrospectively to run a post-hoc matched-mismatched analysis. Across the initial 3-months intervention period, both intervention arms are offered weekly group sessions which are continued monthly for the six months post-T1. 390 initially inactive community-dwelling older adults aged 60 years and above are recruited (T1: expected n=300, T2: expected n=240). A self-administered questionnaire and three-dimensional accelerometers are employed to assess changes in PA between baseline and 3- and 9-months follow-ups. Adherence to PA recommendations, attendance of group sessions, and acceptance of the interventions are also tracked. Selected measures of physical fitness and cognitive capacity are assessed in a subsample of 114 participants of both intervention arms at all three time points.

Results:

This study will provide answers regarding the acceptance and effectiveness of an IT- vs. a print-based intervention for the promotion of regular PA in initially inactive persons aged 60 years and above. In addition to investigating the impact of delivering the intervention via different modalities, the role of participants’ preferences will be examined in this trial.

Conclusions:

Study findings will contribute to a growing body of evidence in Germany concerning the role of community-based interventions for the promotion of PA and healthy ageing in older adults. Further, we hope to generate first results regarding the role of PA intervention delivery mode in this study and the potential of a preference-based cross-over design. Clinical Trial: The study is registered at the German Clinical Trials Register on January 10th, 2019 – number DRKS00016073.