Background. Most adults choose walking as a leisure activity. However, many do not reach the international physical activity guidelines for adults, which recommend moderate intensity aerobic activity for at least 150 minutes/week in bouts of 10 minutes. Purpose. This systematic review provides an update on the walking cadence required to reach moderate intensity in adults and older adults, identifies variables associated with reaching moderate intensity, and evaluates how walking cadence intensity should be measured, but the main purpose is to report the interventions that have been attempted to prescribe walking cadence to increase time spent at moderate intensity or other outcomes for adults and older adults. Methods. SportDISCUS, Scopus, and PubMed databases were searched. We identified 3,917 articles and 31 were retained for this systematic review. Only articles written in English were included. Results. In general, 100 steps/minute is prescribed for adults to achieve moderate intensity, but older adults may require a higher cadence. Currently, few studies have explored using walking cadence prescription as an intervention to increase physical activity levels. Conclusion. Prescribing walking cadence as a way to increase physical activity levels has potential as a practical and useful strategy, but more evidence is required to assess its ability to increase physical activity levels at moderate intensity.

Treatment response heterogeneity and individual responses following exercise training are topics of interest for personalized medicine. Proposed methods to determine the contribution of exercise to the magnitude of treatment response heterogeneity and categorizing participants have expanded and evolved. Setting clear research objectives and having a comprehensive understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the available methods are vital to ensure the correct study design and analytical approach are used. Doing so will ensure contributions to the field are conducted as rigorously as possible. Nonetheless, concerns have emerged regarding the ability to truly isolate the impact of exercise training, and the nature of individual responses in relation to mean group changes. The purpose of this review is threefold. First, the strengths and limitations associated with current methods for quantifying the contribution of exercise to observed treatment response heterogeneity will be discussed. Second, current methods used to categorize participants based on their response to exercise will be outlined, as well as proposed mechanisms for factors that contribute to response variation. Finally, this review will provide an overview of some current issues at the forefront of individual response research.

Background: Children’s health is a current concern and data suggests that poor fundamental movement skills (FMS) could be associated with poor health, which may or may not be mediated by low physical activity level. However, tools to assess FMS have not been standardized, and could consequently lead to different associations between FMS and health indicators. Objective: The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the associations between FMS and health indicators using two different FMS measurement tools often used in Canada. Methods: A total of 145 children between the ages of 9 to 12 were recruited from schools, after school programs, and summer camps in 2016. FMS were evaluated using the Passport for Life (bound, plank, run, kick, throw) and the PLAYbasic (run, hop, throw, kick, and balance). The association between each test and an average score for each tool were tests with health indicators including anthropometric measures, grip strength, cardiorespiratory fitness, and percent body fat. Results: Participants were composed of 54.2% boys aged 10.4 ± 1.2 years with an average body mass index of 18.8 ± 3.8 kg/m². The association between the average score of both tools was 0.77 (p < 0.01), body mass index was significantly associated with 67% of FMS elements using the Passport for Life (r ranging from −0.18 to −0.32; p < 0.05), and 60% of FMS using the PLAYbasic (r ranging from −0.15 to −0.30; p < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the associations of the health indicators with FMS and either FMS assessment tool (Passport for Life and PLAYbasic) (p = 0.05). Average score of FMS was significantly associated with all health indicators using both PLAYbasic and Passport for Life (all p < 0.05). Conclusions: Health indicators in children are associated with FMS regardless of whether the Passport for Life or the PLAYbasic was used as the assessment tool. It is worth investigating if interventions that improve FMS lead to improvements in these health indicators.

Background: Exercise that challenges balance is the most effective fall prevention intervention in community-dwelling older adults. Identifying factors influencing implementation of community fall prevention exercise programs is a critical step in developing strategies to support program delivery. Objective: To identify implementation facilitators, barriers, and details reported in peer-reviewed publications on community fall prevention exercise for older adults. Design: Scoping review. Methods: We searched multiple databases up to July 2023 for English-language publications that reported facilitators and/or barriers to implementing an evidence-based fall prevention exercise program in adults aged 50+ years living independently. At least two reviewers independently identified publications and extracted article, implementation, and exercise program characteristics and coded barriers and facilitators using the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR). Results: We included 22 publications between 2001 and July 2023 that reported factors influencing implementation of 10 exercise programs. 293 factors were reported: 183 facilitators, 91 barriers, 6 described as both a facilitator and barrier, and 13 unspecified factors. Factors represented 33 CFIR constructs across all five CFIR domains: implementation inner setting (n = 95 factors); innovation (exercise program) characteristics (n = 84); individuals involved (n = 54); implementation process (n = 40) and outer setting (n = 20). Eight publications reported implementation strategies used; 6 reported using a conceptual framework; and 13 reported implementation outcomes. Conclusion: The high number of factors reflects the complexity of fall prevention exercise implementation. The low reporting of implementation strategies, frameworks and outcomes highlight the ongoing need for work to implement and sustain community fall prevention exercise programs.

Older adults are the least physically active group with specific barriers to regular exercise, and online exercise programs could overcome some of those barriers. This scoping review aimed to describe the characteristics of supervised group-based synchronous online exercise programs for older adults living in the community, their feasibility, acceptability, and potential benefits. MEDLINE (Ovid), Embase, SPORTDiscus, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature were searched until November 2022. The included studies met the following criteria: participants aged 50 years and above, a minimum of a 6-week group-based supervised and synchronous intervention, and original articles available in English. Eighteen articles were included, with 1,178 participants (67% female, average age of 71 [57–93] years), most (83%) published in the past 3 years. From the limited reported studies, delivering supervised, synchronous online exercise programs (one to three times/week, between 8 and 32 weeks) for older adults living in the community seems feasible, accepted, and can improve physical function.