Exercício com intensidade autosselecionada para idosos: implicações do afeto em aulas comunitárias

The prescription of exercise intensity in a self-selected way, due to greater positive affect, is a strategy used to promote adherence of the population to exercise practice. However, this strategy has not yet been investigated in the elderly in non-laboratory environments and in group classes. The present study had as objective to analyze the implications of the self-selection of intensity of aerobic exercises performed in a group. 176 elderly people from a community center were allocated to three groups according to effort perception tertiaries after a self-selected intensity walk: group with low perception of effort (GBPE – Affective Valence Md 3, Linfe -4, Lsupe 5), with medium perception of effort (GMPE - Affective Valence Md 2, Linfe -5, Lsupe 5) and with high perception of effort (GAPE - Affective Valence Md -2, Linfe -5, Lsupe 5). A significant difference was identified between the groups in affective valence [X² (2) = 50.860; p <0.05], in addition, a significant difference between the groups comparison. The magnitude of the differences was mean in the global analysis (* d = 0.3308) and between GBPE and GAPE (d = 0.3295). It is concluded that there is great perceptual variability in the self-selection of intensity in community exercises conducted by the elderly, possibly psychosocial implications may have influenced these results, such as the "herd effect", common in group activities, and may promote negative affect in the elderly with a greater perception of effort during exercise, even with self-selected intensities.