Development of a Power Training Program to Improve Mobility in Older Veterans

NCT07210645 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 2 other identifiers: RRD8-001-24W25-1070
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 30
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The overall purpose of this study is to develop a power training intervention in partnership with Veterans participating in Gerofit and to evaluate the program's acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary participant outcomes (leg power, physical function and self-report participation).

Conditions

Physical Deconditioning; Mobility Decline

Keywords

power training; mobility; older adult; user-centered design

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Adherence

  Adherence will be measured as a proportion of the number of sessions attended out of the number prescribed per protocol.

  assessed at 3-months (primary endpoint) and 6 months in both intervention and standard of care groups

Secondary Outcomes (11)

• Retention

  assessed at 3-months (primary) and 6 months

• Feasibility

  assessed at 3-months (primary) and 6 months

• Acceptability

  assessed at 3-months (primary) and 6 months

• Leg Press Power

  baseline, 3-months and 6 months

• 4 stair climb power test (4SCPT)

  baseline, 3-months and 6 months

Study Arms (2)

Gerofit Power Training Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

This group will be randomized to receive Gerofit power training intervention for 6 months. They will receive power training as part of each Gerofit exercise session. Gerofit exercise sessions also include aerobic, flexibility, and balance training.

Other: Gerofit Power Training

Gerofit Standard of Care

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

This group will be randomized to receive standard of care exercise Gerofit exercise prescription for 6 months. Standard of care exercise for the Gerofit program includes combined aerobic, strength, flexibility and balance training.

Other: Gerofit Standard of Care

Interventions

Gerofit Power Training OTHER

Gerofit Power Training will include a power training exercise prescription which will focus on having participants perform concentric portions of each resistance exercise as fast and as safely as possible with the eccentric component performed in a slow and controlled manner. The target dose of the power training intervention is 40-60% of the participant's 1-repetition maximum for 4-6 repetitions across 3-6 sets for each exercise. Exercises will focus on the major groups of the upper and lower body. All other Gerofit program components (balance, aerobic, and flexibility) will be consistent with the standard of care group. Sessions will be the same duration as the standard of care Gerofit group (60-75 minutes). The power training and standard of care groups will only differ in the form of resistance training performed.

Gerofit Power Training Intervention

Gerofit Standard of Care OTHER

Gerofit standard of care is a 60-75 minute multimodal exercise program which includes 20-30 minutes of aerobic training, traditional strength training of the major upper and lower body muscle groups (1-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions at moderate load), flexibility training and balance training.

Gerofit Standard of Care

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 65 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Pilot Study Criteria:
• Veterans 65 years of age and older
• New enrollees of the Rocky Mountain Regional Gerofit Program
• ability to function independently in a group setting

You may not qualify if:

• inability to perform basic activities of daily living
• oxygen dependency
• unstable cardiac disease
• moderate to severe cognitive impairment (Montreal cognitive assessment scores \< 24)
• proliferative diabetic retinopathy
• inability to ambulate
• progressive neurological diagnoses (e.g. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis)
• individuals with planned orthopedic surgeries in the next 3 months

Sponsors & Collaborators

• VA Office of Research and Development: lead

Study Sites (1)

Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center, Aurora, CO

Aurora, Colorado, 80045-7211, United States

Location

Study Officials

• Mattie E Pontiff, PT, DPT, PhD

  Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center, Aurora, CO

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Mattie E Pontiff, PT, DPT, PhD

CONTACT

(337) 578-2252; MATTIE.PONTIFF@CUANSCHUTZ.EDU

Jennifer E Stevens-Lapsley, PhD

CONTACT

(303) 949-9304; Jennifer.Stevens-Lapsley@va.gov

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: FED
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Participants will be randomized to 1 of 2 groups: Group 1 (Gerofit power training) will receive the intervention for 6 months, and Group 2 (Gerofit standard of care) will receive standard of care for 6 months.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 29, 2025
• First Posted: October 7, 2025
• Study Start: April 6, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2030
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2030
• Last Updated: October 7, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-09

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)