Education and exercise improved physical performance scores in older adults
The combined program improved an objective test, but the trial detected no improvements in depression, anxiety or participants' reports of physical functioning.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
The combined program improved scores on a physical performance test compared with usual care. The trial detected no improvements in mood symptoms or self-reported physical functioning. These findings support a benefit on the measured test in this population, but do not establish how much everyday functioning changed.
The authors suggest virtual delivery during the pandemic explains the mixed results, but this abstract-based explanation cannot establish that hypothesis or how noticeable the score difference was in daily life.
What researchers found
Change in SPPB physical performance
Change from baseline to month 12 favored the program over usual care (95% CI, 0.07–0.49). The gap was 0.28 standard deviations—units describing how widely scores vary—rather than raw test points.
What participants received
The program paired education about mental health with exercise. Some participants were also offered group maintenance sessions, adding continuing support after the initial individual phase.
What the measures captured
The Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB) assessed objective functioning. Separate measures covered perceived functioning and depression or anxiety symptoms. The trial detected improvement on the performance test, but not on those other measures.
The original publication
Combined Psychoeducational and Exercise Training Intervention to Improve Mental Health and Physical Functioning in Late-Life: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Alegria M, Frontera W, Cruz-Gonzalez M et al.
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41260927
- Record checked
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