• Journal of the Korean Society of Physical Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2024

PURPOSE: This pre-post intervention study aimed to examine the effects of a 12-week supervised modified Taekwondo exercise program on the functional fitness of community-dwelling older adults. METHODS: 10 participants (mean age: 72.3 ± 4.6 years) completed the program over a 12-week period. The intervention consisted of Taekwondo-based exercises modified for older persons. Changes to functional fitness were measured using the finger-to-nose test, functional reach test, timed up and go test, 30-second sit-to-stand test, 30-second arm curl test, Chester step test, chair sit-and-reach test, and back scratch test. Participants were assessed prior to the training and after the final training session, changes were measured using descriptive statistics and paired sample 't' tests. RESULTS: Effect sizes ranged from small to large (Cohen's d = .22 to 1.23). The exercise program was well- tolerated by participants, with a high level of engagement and no attrition for the duration of the program. Results showed significant improvements in most measures of functional fitness (p < .05) except for the back scratch test (p = .051). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest a well-designed, supervised, modified Taekwondo exercise program can significantly improve functional fitness in older adults.

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.213-219
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of balance training on metabolic syndrome indicators and functional fitness. For this purpose, a 12-week balance training was conducted for 16 elderly women who usually complain of back and shoulder pain. In addition, of the 16 subjects, 8 were classified into the exercise group and 8 into the control group, and the effectiveness of the training program was verified. As a result of examining the metabolic syndrome index and functional fitness before and after 12 weeks of balance training, the following results were obtained. First, a significant interaction was shown in the metabolic syndrome index before and after 12 weeks of balance training. Second, there was a significant interaction in functional fitness before and after 12 weeks of balance training. This confirmed that balance training had a positive effect on functional fitness along with positive changes in metabolic syndrome in elderly women. In the future, it is necessary to clarify the effect of balance training through the expansion of the training period and measurement variables.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.67-76
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• 2016

Purpose : The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a 5 week walking program on body composition and functional fitness, as well as its effects on anxiety and depression in elderly women by regular walking exercise(RWE), which helps to provide proper treatment program to them. Method : The 32 subjects who had a regular walking exercise in this research and randomly assigned into two groups, a walking group and a control group. 15 subjects in the experimental group who had RWE. The 17 subjects in the control group who did not have walking exercise. The members of exercise group had walking 50 minutes a day, three times a week, for 5 weeks in same conditions. Results : After RWE, The participants showed lower body weight, body fat mass, % fat, BMI, wast-hip ratio in the walking program. Muscle mass and basic metabolic rate significantly increased after completing the walking program. The health-related physical fitness of the walking group, flexibility and static balance ability were significantly increased. elderly women taking RWE showed significant decreases in the anxiety and depression levels. Conclusion : Findings of this study indicated that A RWE program had favorable effect on body composition, functional fitness, and depression and anxiety in elderly women. Future research needs to target various elderly women groups of a long period.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.187-192
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• 2018

Purpose: This study compared the functional fitness and brake response of elderly and young drivers to confirm the correlation between the functional fitness and brake response. Methods: This study was a cross sectional observational design. Older drivers (>65age, n=21) and young adult drivers (20-40aged, n=20) were enrolled as subjects. The functional fitness of the subjects was measured using a senior fitness test consisting of a back scratch (BS), chair sit and reach (CSR), arm curl (AC), chair stand up (CSU), foot up and go (8-FUG), and 2-minute step (2-MS). The brake response used the virtual driving simulator to measure the brake reaction time (BRT) and braking distance (BD) according to the pedestrian protection and traffic signal compliance. Results: The older drivers had a lower BS (p<0.000), CSU (p=0.040), and 8-FUG (p=0.011) than the young adult drivers. BS and 8-FUG showed a significant positive correlation with the BRT and BD of pedestrian protection and traffic signal compliance. CSU showed a significant negative correlation with the BRT of pedestrian protection and traffic signal compliance. Conclusion: These findings suggest that the flexibility of the upper extremity, lower extremity strength, and agility are strongly correlated with the driving performance of elderly drivers.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.17 no.6 s.86
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• pp.867-872
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• 2007

The aging is related to numerous changes in our body system which declines functional ability. The functional ability in advanced age can be evaluated by the 4 components of fitness (cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility and body composition). The understanding and knowledge of changing 4 components of fitness and the role of exercise on the process of aging is of paramount importance. Despite exercise and physical activity have been shown to delay the process of aging, the exercise guidelines and recommendations for old adults are not well published. This review is to presents the age-related changes in each component of fitness and to present current guidelines and recommendations for exercise in older adults.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.183-188
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• 2017

Background: Recommendations have been proposed for minimum aerobic fitness among firefighters but it is unclear if those criteria relate to performance on the fireground. Less fit individuals fatigue more quickly than fit individuals when working at comparable intensity and may have gait changes, increasing risk of falls. We evaluated the effect of fatigue during a live burn evolution on gait parameters and functional balance comparing them to aerobic fitness levels. Methods: A total of 24 firefighters had gait and balance tested before and after a live burn evolution. Data were stratified by aerobic fitness of greater/less than 14 metabolic equivalents (METs). Results: Analysis of gait cycles measurements before and after the live burn evolution revealed that single leg stance, cycle, and swing time decreased (p < 0.05) but there were no differences in the other measures. There were no differences in time to complete the functional balance test, or errors committed before or after a live burn evolution. When firefighters were sorted by fitness level of 14 METs, there were no differences for errors or time before or after the live burn evolution. Balance data were analyzed using a linear regression. Individuals with lower fitness levels required more time to complete the test. Conclusion: A 14-MET criterion failed to distinguish gait or balance characteristics in this group. However, less fit firefighters did require more time to complete the balance test (p = 0.003). Aerobic fitness alone does not predict gait changes among firefighters following a live burn evolution but does appear to influence functional balance.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.625-634
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• 2022

The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between physical activity (PA) level and functional fitness (FF) parameters in community-dwelling older adults aged 65 or above in Korea. Subjects' (M: 1,645; F: 2,394) PA level were assessed using a questionnaire. The subjects were divided into two groups: one below the recommended level of PA(LPA) and one above the recommended level (PA). PA was further classified by intensity level into medium- and high-intensity PA (MIPA and HIPA respectively) groups. FF was assessed based on six test items representing the following fitness areas: lower and upper body strength, agility and dynamic balance, flexibility, aerobic capacity, coordination, and body composition. Of the subjects, 36% met the recommended level of PA. Both MIPA and HIPA were superior to LPA in all FF items(p<.05). The HIPA group was significantly better in terms of agility and dynamic balance, coordination, and lower body strength (only in women) than was the MIPA group(p<.05). In conclusion, PA above the recommended level is needed to maintain functional fitness. In addition, HIPA seems to promote fall-related functional fitness and should be encouraged when safe and feasible.

• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.67-74
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• 2009

Background: Various functional factors should be incorporated during assessment and intervention for patient rehabilitation. Stable respiratory function is one of required factors for functional restoration. To maximize respiratory physical therapy intervention outcome, it is required to understand clinical features of respiratory diseases and physical therapy approaches. Methods: Previous studies were systematically reviewed through computerized search. Methodological qualities of selected studies were evaluated and the levels of recommendations were determined. Results: Assessment for respiratory pattern and thoracic mobility is of importance to improve cardiopulmonary fitness during physical reconditioning. Application of optimal therapeutic protocol can increase thoracic mobility and respiratory function. Interdisciplinary communication is critical during rehabilitation for respiratory patients. Health care provider should have professional knowledge and experience for cardiopulmonary fitness and obligation to endeavor for patients' respiratory rehabilitation. It is necessary to standardize therapeutic intervention, and rehabilitative respiratory exercise should be applied to confirm the effects of intervention. Conclusion: Respiratory diseases that may reduce patients' quality of life and cardiopulmonary fitness should be resolved through physical therapy approaches. Through conducting research, effect of evidence-based and patients' function-oriented intervention can be determined.

• World Technopolis Review
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.21-42
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• 2019

The purpose of this research was to investigate the factors influencing global expansion/scalability of Kenyan Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Factor analysis and multiple/multivariate regression analysis to determine the functional relationship between independent variables (factors) and the dependent variable was used. The independent variables were: innovation & technology, fitness/appropriateness of management, global marketing strategy; and support environment and the dependent variable, global expansion/scalability. Data was collected from a survey of randomly selected firms of 205, drawn from a population of 440 firms from Kenya Manufacturers Directory, with 175 firms responding. The key findings from the research in relation to Kenyan SMEs were that: there is a functional relationship between global market strategy and global expansion; there is a functional relationship between innovation and technology orientation and global expansion, there is no significant functional relationship between supportive environment of firms and their global expansion; and there is no significant functional relationship between fitness/appropriateness of management and global expansion/scalability. The implications for practice is that the ranking of the factors in order of priority supports focusing concern on the orientation of business strategy toward global market strategy, market research geared at obtaining foreign market intelligence, innovation and technology, product adaptation, service orientation, collaborative ventures, and long-range vision as key factors in making Kenyan firms successful in the international market. The implication for policy and practice is that there is need for collaboration between industry and government in pursuing policies for global expansion/scalability and among SMEs and large enterprises particularly in areas of rapid technological change.

• Journal of Korean Physical Therapy Science
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.1-9
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• 2008

Background: This study was to investigate effects of falls prevention exercise on functional fitness in elderly. Methods: A total of 45 healthy over 65years old adults (men=15, women=30) who were participated in this study. Exercise were involved in the period of 12 week complex physical training for around 50 minutes a day, three times per week. We measured subjects' physical activity levels by short physical performance battery(SPPB) test, timed up & go(TUG) test, one leg standing test(OLST) with closed eyes and maximal step length (MSL) test. Results: After falls prevention exercise, there were statically significant differences in SPPB, TUG, OLST and MSL test (P<.01) between pre and post test. There were statically significant differences in SPPB, TUG, OLST, MSL between pre and post test in men and women. There were statically significant differences between men and women in SPPB, TUG, OLST and MSL test. Conclusion: Falls prevention exercise had significant effects on physical fitness level in elderly, with a result increase muscle strength, balance ability and it might prevent falls.