Improvement of Vital Age and Fitness by Land-based and Water-based Exercises in Healthy Older Women

Effects of land-based exercises (LEX) and water-based exercises (WEX) (12-wk, 3 d-wk -1 , 60 min•day -1 each) on vital age (VA) and fitness in older women were studied. Forty apparently healthy participants (67.6 ± 3.9 yrs) were randomly divided into a LEX (warm-up, programmed aerobic/anaerobic accommodating circuit exercise [PACE], cool-down exercises) group (LX, n=11), a WEX (warm-up, endurance, resistance, cool-down exercises) group (WX, n=14), and a control group (CN, n=15). Based on independent t-tests, improvements in VA (p < 0.01 in LX and WX) and many fitness variables including mobility movements (LX: p < o.05, WX: p < o.01), self-care movements (LX: p < 0.001, WX: p < o.05), V02LT (LX: p < 0.001, WX: p < 0.001), and HRLT (LX: p < 0.001, WX: p < 0.01) were similar in LX and WX compared to that of CN. Slightly greater improvements were observed in WX compared to LX which may be attributed to the quantity of aerobic exercise performed (30 min alone [WX] vs. 30 min PACE [LX]). In conclusion, both LEX and WEX effectively lower vital age and improve fitness in older women. These benefits may be related to quality and quantity of exercise irrespective of exercise mode.