Assessing the psychological and physiological efficacy of an exercise intervention in aged individuals: Is there a role for core-stability training?

Following baseline data collection, participants will be randomized to one of two groups (32 per group) using a computer-generated block randomisation list with random block sizes of 2, 4, or 6. Sequentially numbered, opaque envelopes containing the participant’s group assignment will be prepared by research staff not affiliated with delivery of the exercise program. The group allocation will be conducted by the same researcher and occurred after completion of baseline assessments. Group allocations will be concealed from participants and research assistants. Training: all exercise training sessions will be conducted and supervised in the Rehabilitation, Strength and Conditioning Laboratory (Sport Science Laboratories), at Murdoch University, Perth, Western Australia. Each exercise program involves 12 weeks of training. The training intervention will comprise a multimodal exercise program (walking-balance), with or without trunk strengthening/motor control exercises. Participants will attend three sessions of 45-minutes each that will be fully administered and supervised by qualified exercise scientist. Exercise difficulty will be progressed over the course of the programme. Programme adherence is defined a priori as participating in at least 80% of the exercise sessions. Detraining: following completion of the 12-week exercise program, participants in both groups will be instructed to continue with a walking-only program over the subsequent 6 weeks. A walking-only program was adopted and termed the ‘detraining phase’, because walking has no apparent effect on the main outcome measures of the trial, namely trunk muscle morphology (1) size or most (except 6-minute walk test) functional tasks adopted in the current study. (1) Shahtahmassebi B, Hebert JJ, Stomski NJ, Hecimovich M, Fairchild TJ. The effect of exercise training on lower trunk muscle morphology. Sports