Effectiveness of resistance training on resilience in Hong Kong Chinese older adults

Resilience is regarded as a psychological variable facilitating successful and positive aging. Combined with active aging, mind-body intervention and aerobic exercises have been frequently examined to determine their capacity to promote active and successful aging. In this study, three groups of older adults participated in a 16-week intervention, with resistance training and Tai Chi as the active control group. The effects on resilience, functional fitness, and quality of life were measured immediately after the intervention and 12 weeks later. Results (n = 141)indicated that resistance training participants had significant differences in upper limb muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and fat percentage while Tai Chi participants showed improvement in lower limb muscles and aerobic ability. Both groups significantly reduced BMI and significant differences in the within-subject effect. Moreover, participants only showed a significant between-group effect on muscle strength, aerobic endurance, and dynamic balance in the pre-test versus the post-test. Results indicated a prominent level of positive and self-related successful aging among participants, thus indicating that other factors impacted less on their level of resilience and health-related quality of life. However, the research outcomes still demonstrate the better effect of Tai Chi on older adults’ psychological outcomes. It can also be expected that other self-related factors might have affected the effect of resistance training. Trial registration: The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov PRS (Trial ID: NCT04690465; date first posted: 30/12/2020).