Stair Climbing Exercise Versus Traditional Resistance Exercise

F-V profile

Current evidence suggests resistance exercise as the primary therapeutic strategy to prevent
 age-related functional decline. The National Strength and Conditioning Association recently
 stated that a properly designed resistance exercise program should include power exercises
 performed at higher velocities in concentric movements with moderate intensities. We should
 be aware that not all older adults are easily motivated to train in unfamiliar gym-based
 settings with high subscription fees. Therefore, implementation of traditional gym-based
 resistance exercise at a large scale has been found to be difficult. Interestingly, we have
 previously shown that the use of high external loads, which implies the need for specific
 facility memberships, is not necessary to induce neuromuscular gains. This provides strong
 support for home-based training intervention strategies. Stair climbing or stepping-based
 exercise constitute a promising avenue to ameliorate the cost-effectiveness and
 implementation potential of resistance exercise in older adults. Such exercises can induce
 muscular activation levels similar to high-load resistance exercise and result in similar or
 even better gains in muscle mass, strength and power compared to slow-speed resistance
 exercise when properly designed. However, the (neuro)-muscular effects of stair climbing
 exercise have never been compared to the more optimal power-oriented resistance exercise,
 which is the primary aim of this study. The secondary aim of this study is to examine if
 stair climbing exercise also has beneficial effects on cognition.