ArticleBMC medicine2026
Associations of exercise frequency and type with trajectories of daily activity limitations among older adults in the UK.
Article in BMC medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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Abstract
backgroundAlthough regular exercise is widely recommended to delay functional decline, few studies have examined the joint associations of exercise frequency and type with trajectories of daily activity limitations among older adults in the UK. This study examined how exercise frequency, type, and their combination associated with population-average trajectories of daily activity limitations in UK older adults.
methodsWe used data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study, including 28,419 person-wave observations of people aged 65 years and older followed across four waves between 2015 and 2023. Exercise frequency and type were assessed at baseline, and the exercise type was categorized as aerobic, resistance/strength, mind-body/balance, or no exercise, with further classification by participation frequency. Daily activity limitations were modelled as count outcomes using negative binomial generalized estimating equations to estimate population-average trajectories over time. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05 (two-sided).
resultsCompared with no exercise, participation in moderate exercise frequency was associated with a 59.1% lower rate of activities of daily living (ADL) limitations (IRR = 0.409, 95% CI: 0.355-0.472, P < 0.001) and a 59.4% lower rate of instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) limitations (IRR = 0.406, 95% CI: 0.357-0.462, P < 0.001). Aerobic exercise showed the lowest predicted limitation counts over time, followed by mind-body/balance activities. Strength-based exercise demonstrated a frequency-dependent pattern: moderate-frequency participation was associated with 62.0% lower rate of ADL limitations (IRR = 0.380, 95% CI: 0.241-0.601, P < 0.001), whereas high-frequency participation did not confer additional benefit (IRR = 1.086, 95% CI: 0.824-1.430, P = 0.560) and showed trajectories similar to those of non-exercisers.
conclusionsThis study shows that exercise type and frequency jointly shape population-average trajectories of daily activity limitations in older adults. Aerobic and mind-body/balance exercises are associated with favourable functional trajectories. For resistance/strength training, moderate rather than high participation frequency appears to be associated with better functional outcomes. These findings suggest that both exercise type and frequency may be important considerations when developing exercise guidance to support functional independence in later life.
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