Land vs. Water Exercises on Performance and Swimming Behavior in Older Adults

This study investigates the effects of an 8-week structured land and shallow-water exercise program on physical performance, recreational swimming behaviors, and aquatic risk perceptions in older adults.

Study Design and Procedures:

Intervention: Participants participate in a progressive, 8-week exercise program conducted three times per week, combining land-based conditioning and shallow-water aquatic activities.

Physical Assessments: Lower-body functional strength is evaluated using the 30-second chair sit-up test (30CST), and upper-body isometric strength is measured via handgrip dynamometry.

Behavioral and Safety Assessments: Standardized questionnaires are administered before and after the intervention to assess swimming frequency, duration, distance, self-reported risky water behaviors, and fall-related anxiety during water entry and exit.

The primary objective is to evaluate functional fitness changes and determine how physical conditioning interacts with safety perceptions and behavioral choices in aquatic environments among older adults.

Inclusion criteria

Community-dwelling older adults aged 60 years or older

Able to participate independently in land and shallow-water exercise programs

Able to understand and respond to survey questions and assessment protocols

Willing to provide written informed consent prior to study participation

Exclusion criteria

Presence of severe or unstable cardiovascular, respiratory, or metabolic conditions contraindicating moderate exercise

Acute or severe orthopedic, musculoskeletal, or neurological impairments restricting participation in physical testing or exercise sessions

Open skin lesions, severe infectious diseases, or incontinence preventing participation in aquatic activities

Severe cognitive impairment precluding comprehension of instructions or safe execution of exercise protocols