Physical activity among a sample of Iranians aged over 60 years: an application of the transtheoretical model.

Background: Physical inactivity is one of the leading causes of major chronic disease, which contributes substantially to the global burden of disease, death and disability. This study examined physical activity in a randomly selected sample of elderly people in Tehran, Iran.

Methods: A random sample of 400 elderly people aged 60 years and over was selected through multistage sampling. A multi-sectional questionnaire that contained demographic characteristics, physical activity knowledge, benefits, barriers, self-efficacy, and readiness stage was used. Physical activity was measured by questions retrieved from the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly.

Results: This study showed knowledge, perceived benefits, and self-efficacy could predict physical activity stage of change (P<0.001). Sixty-two percent of participants reported laziness as the most important barrier for not engaging in physical activity. Meeting new people (74%), having fun (71.8%), and contacting friends (67.73%) were the most prevalent reasons for participating in physical activity.

Conclusion: According to this study, individuals with higher knowledge, perceived benefits and self-efficacy were more likely to engage in physical activity. Furthermore, those who perceived lower barriers towards this behavior were more physically active.