Strategies for Long-Term Maintenance of Physical Activity Among Older Adults: A Qualitative Study From India

Abstract

Long-term physical activity (PA) maintenance is challenging for older adults. Equipping older adults with strategies to support long-term PA maintenance can be an effective way to tackle this problem. Moreover, there is a lack of studies regarding long-term PA maintenance among older adults from non-Western settings. This qualitative research is one of the first studies conducted in an Indian context that explores the strategies developed and utilized by older adults who have successfully maintained their PA for the long term (>1 year) in their home settings. In-depth semistructured interviews were conducted with 19 older adults, and data were analyzed using an inductive reflexive thematic analysis approach. This article reports five strategies of PA maintenance, together comprising 13 substrategies. This study highlights the importance of using strategies to support the long-term maintenance of PA among older adults in India. However, these strategies would also be useful in other sociocultural contexts.