Clinics (Aug 2018)

Does resistance training improve body image satisfaction among the elderly? A cross-sectional study

  • Roberta Luksevicius Rica,
  • Eliane Florencio Gama,
  • Alexandre Fernandes Machado,
  • Angélica Castilho Alonso,
  • Alexandre L. Evangelista,
  • Aylton Figueira-Junior,
  • Marcelo Zanetti,
  • Regina Brandão,
  • Maria Luiza de Jesus Miranda,
  • José Vilaça Alves,
  • Marco Bergamin,
  • Danilo Sales Bocalini

DOI
https://doi.org/10.6061/clinics/2018/e290
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 73, no. 0

Abstract

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OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate whether body image satisfaction improves with practice in resistance training in elderly women. METHODS: Forty women were selected and randomly divided into an untrained group (UN) group and a group trained in resistance exercises (RT). To evaluate body image satisfaction, the silhouette matching task was used. RESULTS: No differences were found between current (5.45±0.24) and ideal (4.7±0.12) silhouettes in the RT group. However, the UN group showed a significant difference (p<0.01) between current (10.4±0.43) and ideal (5.6±0.26) silhouettes. The current silhouette was significantly different between the UN and RT groups (p<0.002). However, the ideal silhouette value did not differ between them. Body satisfaction was present in 90% of the participants in the RT group, and the difference was 15% less than that in the UN group (x2 test, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: Resistance training in elderly women can promote satisfaction with their body image.

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