Effects of a giant exercising board game intervention on ambulatory physical activity among nursing home residents: a preliminary study

Purpose: This study examined the effects of a giant (4 meters by 3 meters) exercising board
game intervention on ambulatory physical activity (PA) and on a broader array of physical
and psychological outcomes among nursing home residents.
Materials and methods: A quasi-experimental longitudinal study was carried out in two
comparable nursing homes. Ten participants (aged 82.5 ± 6.3 and comprising 6 women)
meeting the inclusion criteria took part to the one-month intervention in one nursing home,
whereas eleven participants (aged 89.9 ± 3.1 with 8 women) were assigned to the control
group in the other nursing home. The giant exercising board game required participants to
perform strength, flexibility, balance and endurance activities. The assistance provided by an
exercising specialist decreased gradually during the intervention in an autonomy-oriented
approach, based on the self-determination theory (SDT). The following were assessed at
baseline, after the intervention and after a follow-up period of three months: PA (steps/day
and energy expenditure/day with ActiGraph, GT3X+), cognitive status (MMSE), quality of
life (EQ-5D), motivation for PA (BREQ-2), gait and balance (Tinetti and SPPB), functional
mobility (Timed Up and Go) and the muscular isometric strength of the lower limb muscles.
Results and conclusions:
In the intervention group, PA increased from 2921 steps/day at baseline to 3358 steps/day
after the intervention (+14.9%, p = 0.04) and 4083 steps/day (+39.8%, p = 0.03) after three
months. Energy expenditure/day also increased after the intervention (+110 kcal/day, +6.3%,
p = 0.01) and after three months (+219 kcal/day, +12.3%, p = 0.02). Quality of life (p < 0.05),
balance and gait (p < 0.05), and strength of the ankle (p < 0.05) were also improved after
three months. Such improvements were not observed in the control group. The preliminary
results are promising but further investigation is required to confirm and evaluate the longterm
effectiveness of PA interventions in nursing homes