Research
Adherence
Walking group interventions targeting older adults (>61 years) are more effective at increasing physical activity than those targeting younger adults (≤60 years).
Walking groups are particularly beneficial for older adults. If you are over 60, joining a walking group may provide a significant boost to your physical activity levels.
GoodQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
Interventions which target adults from 18 to 59 years old had smaller effect sizes (d = 0.48, 95%CI from 0.27 to 0.69, n = 2548, k = 12, p < 0.0001) than interventions that target older adults (d = 0.57 95%CI from 0.17 to 0.98, n = 2024, k = 7, p < 0.005)
Why this rating
Statistically significant difference in effect sizes between subgroups, though fewer studies targeted older adults.
Source
Do interventions to promote walking in groups increase physical activity? A meta-analysis
Aikaterini Kassavou et al. · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · 2013
DOI 10.1186/1479-5868-10-18
Meta-analysis · 19 studiesCited 195×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Interventions promoting walking in groups significantly increase physical activity in adults, with a medium overall effect size (d = 0.52).Good
- Walking group interventions targeting both genders are more effective at increasing physical activity than those targeting only women.Good
- Walking group interventions delivered by lay people are as effective as those delivered by professionals.Good
Related findings · Adherence
- Regular physical activity (at least 150 minutes/week of moderate-intensity) reduces all-cause and cardiovascular mortality by 20-30% and lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes by 25-35%.Strong
- Increasing physical activity from a sedentary lifestyle to an active one in middle adulthood significantly reduces the risk of coronary events compared to remaining sedentary.Strong
- Resistance exercise is the only intervention capable of consistently restoring muscle function and strength in sarcopenia, partially overcoming age-related anabolic resistance.Strong
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