Exercise’s effect on mobility disability in older adults with and without obesity: the LIFE study randomized clinical trial
Open accessAbstract
Objective: Some data suggest that obesity blunts the benefits of exercise on mobility in older adults. This study tested the homogeneity of the effect of a physical activity intervention on major mobility disability (MMD) across baseline obesity classifications in the Lifestyle Interventions and Independence for Elders (LIFE) Study. LIFE randomized 1,635 sedentary men and women aged 70 to 89 years to a moderate‐intensity physical activity (PA) or health education program. Methods: MMD, defined as the inability to walk 400 m, was determined over an average follow‐up of 2.6 years. Participants were divided into four subgroups: (1) nonobese (BMI < 30 kg/m 2; n = 437); (2) nonobese with high waist circumference (WC > 102 cm [men], > 88 cm [women]; n = 434); (3) class 1 obesity (30 kg/m 2 ≤ BMI < 35 kg/m 2; n = 430); and (4) class 2 + obesity (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m 2; n = 312). Cox proportional hazard modeling was used to test an obesity by intervention interaction. Results: The PA intervention had the largest benefit in participants with class 2 + obesity (hazard ratio 0.69, 95% confidence interval 0.48, 0.98). However, there was no statistically significant difference in benefit across obesity categories. Conclusions: A structured PA program reduced the risk of MMD even in older adults with extreme obesity.
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Most older adults with class 2 obesity (BMI at least 35 kg/m2) can safely perform moderate-intensity physical activity.
“studies have shown that even most older adults with class 21 obesity (BMI $35 kg/m 2 ) can safely perform moderate-intensity physical activity (15).”
From The Benefits of Exercise Training in Combination With Weight Loss Therapies (2025) · cites this paper as [15]
The Conclusion (page unavailable) says the LIFE trial suggests a structured moderate-intensity program is safe even for people with class 2+ obesity, defined in Methods as BMI ≥35 kg/m². But the conclusion concerns trial participants at high risk for mobility disability; it does not establish that most older adults in this BMI category can safely perform such activity. (LLM, conf=0.86)
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References 16 · Cited by 16
- Authors
- Kritchevsky, S. B., Lovato, L., Handing, E. P., Blair, S., Botoseneanu, A., Guralnik, J. M., Liu, C., King, A., Marsh, A. P., Pahor, M., Rejeski, W. J., Spring, B., & Manini, T.
- Affiliations
- Wake Forest University Health Sciences (US)
- University of South Carolina (US)
- University of Michigan (US)
- University of Maryland, Baltimore (US)
- Boston University (US)
- Stanford Medicine (US)
- Wake Forest University (US)
- University of Florida (US)
- Northwestern University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Kritchevsky, Stephen B.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Obesity
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2017-06-26
- Volume
- 25
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 1199-1205
- ISSN
- 1930-7381 (ISSN-L)
- 1930-739X
- PMC
- PMC5567861
- OpenAlex
- W2730056840
- Cited by
- 16
- References
- 16
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 3
- FWCI
- 1.42
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Obesity (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Wake Forest University (1 P30 AG21332)
- Tufts University (1P30AG031679)
- University of Pittsburgh (P30 AG024827)
- Yale University (P30AG021342)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation › Balance, Gait, and Falls Prevention
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nutrition and Health in Aging
- Keywords
- physical activity interventions, mobility impairment, older adults, morbid obesity, waist circumference, sedentary aging, life studies, health education, walking ability
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Exercise Therapy, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Persons with Disabilities, Health Education, Humans, Life Style, Male, Obesity, Surveys and Questionnaires, Risk Factors, Body Mass Index, Proportional Hazards Models, Single-Blind Method, Walking, Treatment Outcome, Mobility Limitation, Waist Circumference
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