Physical activity tends to decline as we age, which is related to increased risk of poor health outcomes. Research shows that participants, especially older women, are more likely to adhere to a fitness program when they have social supports.³ Likewise, gerontology research demonstrates that the social relationships forged by older women at community and fitness centers can be long-lasting and provide a variety of supportive functions. Older adults respond well to pool- or water-based aerobic exercises that are safe on the joints and provide a comfortable environment away from the intimidating nature of the gym. Therefore, water-based classes provided at community fitness centers are well positioned to provide ample social opportunities to further reinforce continued physical activity for older women, resulting in health and quality-of-life improvements.

This proposed project is an ethnographic exploration of the social relationships created and maintained in the context of water-based fitness classes (water aerobics) at a local community center (YMCA) that is attended by a diverse group of older adults. It is anticipated that the friendships forged by women in the pool at the YMCA provide a variety of social supports that help to maintain healthy aging outcomes among participants. Drawing on components of Activity Theory and Social Support Theory, this project will utilize participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and questionnaires to understand the role of fitness center friendships in the lives of older women in Anchorage.

Objectives

The proposed project research question is: what is the nature of social relationships forged through water-based fitness classes among older women (aged 55+ years) at a local YMCA in Anchorage, and what is the role of these friendships on healthy aging outcomes?

• Aim 1: Describe the relationships that form between older women participants of water aerobics classes at the Lake Otis YMCA. Participant observation and semi-structured interviewing of water aerobics participants, teachers, and YMCA staff will reveal the depth and breadth of friendships that form among this sample of women.
• Aim 2: Determine whether these fitness center relationships confer psychosocial benefits among a sample of older women participants. Semi-structured interviews will be used to document the nature of the psychosocial relationships and their benefits that women with friends in water aerobics classes report experiencing.
• Aim 3: Identify the relationship between fitness center friendships and healthy aging outcomes among a sample of older women participants. Questionnaires will measure the number and strength of social relationships among older women participants as well as self-reported health outcomes (including height and weight to calculate BMI). Regression analysis will determine the strength of the relationship between participants who have water aerobics friends and greater self-reported health and/or lower BMI than participants who do not have friends in the water aerobics class.

 

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Read the full publication from the Alaska Journal of Anthropology.

• Howell, B.M., Hanson, B.L., and Wanner. S. (2022). Friendships forged in fitness: An ethnography of older women’s social experiences at a community fitness center. Alaska. Journal of Anthropology, 20(1), 67-81.