Community exercise program planned for adults over 50 with chronic diseases

This study focuses on promoting physical activity (PA) through the implementation of a Community Physical Exercise Program for Chronic Diseases (CPEP-CD), targeting individuals aged 50 years and older with at least two of the following conditions: cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular disease or risk (CVD), overweight, diabetes mellitus (DM), and musculoskeletal diseases. The primary objective is to improve muscle and cardiorespiratory health and well-being, while also contributing to a more objective and evidence-based exercise prescription for these pathological conditions.

Population ageing is a global challenge associated with an increased prevalence of chronic diseases that compromise quality of life (QoL). A sedentary lifestyle is linked to declines in muscle function and cardiorespiratory fitness and is considered a major risk factor for morbidity and mortality. Consequently, physical exercise is widely recommended as a key non-pharmacological intervention across multiple chronic diseases.

According to World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, regular PA is a protective factor in the prevention and management of non-communicable diseases, including cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and DM. In addition, PA provides mental health benefits, supports healthy weight maintenance, and enhances overall well-being. In adults, regular PA is associated with reductions in all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, and the incidence of hypertension.

Within this context, the aim of this project is to implement a community-based physical exercise program for individuals with chronic disease and multimorbidity, focusing on CVD and cerebrovascular disease or risk, DM, and OA. The program integrates existing exercise prescription guidelines while personalizing exercise progression according to both disease-specific and multimorbidity profiles. The primary outcomes include improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength, bone health, functional capacity, and QoL. Additionally, through individualized training monitoring, this study seeks to establish an exercise prescription tailored to the most prevalent combinations of chronic diseases, thereby providing more objective and practical guidance for family physicians, exercise professionals, and rehabilitation specialists, and supporting more personalized and targeted exercise-based strategies for chronic disease prevention and management.