The Piaget Institute of Silves is developing activities with users of the Santas Casas de Misericórdia in its area of influence, places where Physiotherapy students carry out dynamic muscle strength training sessions for the elderly, under the supervision of the therapist Beatriz Minghelli.
The Piaget Institute recalls that “in Portugal, there is a double aging process, where there are fewer young people and more elderly people, with a reduced or negative population growth”.
This demographic transition represents a transfigured pyramid and the number of individuals living with chronic illnesses for decades has increased, that is, the aging of people with chronic illnesses has become “normal”, which implies greater expenses for health.
Therefore, stresses that institute, "elderly people should be encouraged to perform dynamic muscle strength training with the aim of maintaining and increasing muscle strength, which can help prevent falls and improve joint mobility." The practice of strength training allows to acquire improvements in the performance of activities of daily living, which are carried out with less effort, improving functional independence allowing to live more years in a more autonomous way.
The prescription of strength exercise must take into account the population to be worked. In the case of the elderly, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends performing 8 to 10 exercises involving large muscle groups, where each exercise must be performed between 10 to 15 repetitions.
Strength training should be performed with a weekly frequency of at least twice a week, with at least 2 hours of rest between training sessions.
Comments