These resources support physiotherapists and exercise physiologists to prescribe progressive resistance training for older people living with, or at risk of, frailty. They are evidence-based, to ensure safe and accurate assessment of strength and effective prescription.
About progressive resistance training for frailty
- While no amount of physical activity can stop the biological aging process, evidence shows that physical activity does lead to an increased active life expectancy and improved quality of life.
- Frailty is not a barrier to robust resistance exercise, but rather one of the most important reasons to prescribe it.
- Progressive resistance training can be safely modified for home and all care settings to meet an individual's requirements, regardless of age or degree of frailty.
- In addition to improvements in strength and impacts on sarcopenia, resistance exercise confers functional and cognitive benefits for older individuals living with frailty.
Health professionals have a pivotal role in providing their clientele with appropriate exercise prescription.
People living with frailty often have concurrent deficits in balance or endurance. Exercise addressing these areas should be used in combination with progressive resistance training and not as a substitute.
Published: September 2022