Abstract

In this study we analyse the changes at a cardiovascular level, referring to parameters of heart rate and arterial pressure, in a “maintaining” activity for old people in the city of Huesca, organized by the Municipal Organisation of Sports, in the field of old people’s gymnastics. The subjects studied were 67 men and women who practised the activity of old people’s gymnastics at different times, of ages between 64 and 82. They did the submaximum Harvard test using the index of performance of the Ruffier-Dickson test. The study consisted in doing two tests, with an interval of five months, and quantifying the previous parameters, so as to see if significant changes were produced in their physical condition. We found significant differences in the performance index, based on the heart rate and in the average arterial pressure, in harmony with the results obtained in other studies of the same theme. In any case, we must remember that the practice of physical activity does not only have the only objective the improvement of physiological parameters, but also to produce advantages on a physical, sociological, affective level, etc.