Effects of aerobic exercise of different intensities on the social, emotional, and financial functioning of healthy older adults: results from a 16-week exercise randomized control trial

Better social, emotional, and financial functioning are associated with improved health outcomes in older adults. While the literature supports a positive relationship between physical activity and increased functional ability in older adulthood, the intensity of physical activity necessary to achieve these gains remains uncertain. To address this gap, the current analysis uses data collected as part of a larger randomized controlled trial to examine the effects of a supervised exercise intervention on measures of social, emotional, and financial functioning. Healthy older adults (n = 211) completed baseline assessments including cardiovascular fitness and health and functioning measures and were randomly assigned to 16 weeks of either: (1) low intensity continuous training (LICT); or (2) moderate intensity continuous training + interval training (MICT + IT). Participants across exercise conditions reported a significant decrease from baseline to post-intervention in depression [F(1, 158) = 22.17, p < .001] and instrumental risk taking [F(1, 157) = 6.72, p < .05]. Further, participants assigned to the MICT + IT condition showed significantly greater improvements in loneliness relative to those in the LICT condition [F(1, 157) = 5.99, p < .05]. By and large, healthy older adults experienced some improvements in functional ability after 16 weeks of exercise. Though most changes were not related to the intensity of exercise condition, associations between increased cardiovascular fitness and both depression and anxiety suggest that exercising at an intensity that improves fitness may confer greater benefits in some domains.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02068612.