Grant: Summer Program in Aging

Problem: As individuals age, they have a greater risk of limited mobility, or difficulty in getting around safely in one's environment. In older adults, women experience a higher rate of mobility limitations compared to men. Limited mobility is linked to illness, disease, and decreased quality of life in older adults. Physical activity and exercise have beneficial effects on mobility. Recent evidence suggests that increasing physical activity by 6-minutes per day can improve mobility and prevent future disability. Despite the positive impacts on health, many older adults do not perform sufficient physical activity, particularly those with limited mobility. Health coaching, a person-centered process to change behaviours with goal-setting, action planning, and participant feedback, is effective at improving physical activity participation in older adults. However, none of the previous health coaching studies included older adults with limited mobility. This study aims to address this knowledge gap with a 6-month health coaching aimed at improving mobility and increasing physical activity in older adults with limited mobility. Research Question: Can a 26-week health coaching program improve mobility and increase physical activity in older adults with limited-mobility when compared with a health education group? Design: We will conduct a randomized controlled trial of 290 older adults aged 70-89 years with limited mobility. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive health coaching or health education over 26-weeks. The health coaching group will work with their coach to improve their physical activity by 50 minutes per week, while the health education group will receive general health education in falls prevention, goal-setting, nutrition, sleep, and mindfulness. Potential Impact: Increasing physical activity through the use of health coaching has the potential to improve mobility and decrease the negative health impacts of limited mobility in older adults.