Remotely delivered mind–body physical activity improves physical function in older adults

A pilot trial of remotely delivered mind–body physical activity was carried out in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants performed twice weekly one-hour sessions of the program for eight weeks, with sessions delivered using Zoom. Physical function was evaluated using the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), with the individual components of balance, gait speed and the Five-times Sit-To-Stand (5STS) also compared. A significant improvement was noted in 5STS performance for the experimental group (n = 10) of 4.1 s (d = 2.0; 95% CI: 0.8, 3.2). There were no significant differences for balance, gait speed or total SPPB score. Future work is needed to determine whether remotely delivered physical activities could be a feasible alternative to face-to-face sessions for older people with limited mobility.