(1) Background: High-Intensity Functional Training (HIFT) is a new exercise modality that emphasizes multi-joint functional movements adaptable to any fitness level and promotes greater muscle recruitment. Previous studies have evaluated the positive effects of HIFT on mental and cognitive health but have not evaluated it in older people. This study aims to conduct a systematic review of randomized controlled trials assessing the effects of HIFT on general cognition in older adults with cognitive impairment. (2) Methods: Following the PRISMA 2020 guideline, articles that did a high-intensity functional physical exercise intervention on cognitive performance in older adults with mild to moderate cognitive impairment (MMSE > 10) or dementia, aged 55 years or older, published between 2011 and 2021 in five different electronic databases: PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, CINAHL, and Cochrane plus were included. (3) Results: 7 articles were included, all having general cognition as their primary outcome. All assessed general cognition using the Mini-Mental State Examination, the ADAS-Cog, or both. All studies had at least one HIFT experimental group with a frequency of 2 sessions per week and a variable duration between protocols of 12, 13, 16, and 26 weeks. Two articles showed that a progressive HIFT program improves general cognition, four articles showed no significant changes within or between groups and one article concluded that a HIFT intervention does not slow cognitive decline. (4) Conclusions: Evidence exists of the benefits of HIFT on general cognition in older adults with cognitive impairment, assessed using the MMSE, the ADAS-cog, or both. Two articles that showed improvement in cognitive function used progressive HIFT with 80% RM at 6, 12, and 1 weeks; however, in the other articles, due to the heterogeneity of intervention protocols, measurement time points, and control group activities, mixed results were evidenced

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a strong influence on people’s quality of life, and the different restrictive measures during the phases of the pandemic have had consequences for physical and mental health. This study determined the changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL), sleep quality, depression symptoms (DS), and physical activity (PA) level of middle-aged Colombian university personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis was performed following a longitudinal design on a sample of 354 people at four points before and during the pandemic. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the SF-12v2, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (ZSDS) were included in an online survey. The measurements showed a decrease in quality of life with respect to PCS from 91.66 ± 10.78 to 83.64 ± 17.22 (p = 0.000) and MCS from 87.57 ± 12.23 to 80.90 ± 17.31, while poor sleep quality increased from 25.99% to 47.46% (p = 0.000), with DS reaching the peak during mandatory confinement (14.69%). Regarding the level of physical activity, the period of mandatory confinement inverted the proportion, highlighting active people as a minority (32.2%). In the multivariate analysis, we adjusted for age, sex, BMI, and socioeconomic level, discarding confounding effects and their interactions with the results obtained. In conclusion, this study showed that the pandemic has had a negative impact on sleep quality, HRQoL, DS, and PA level.

Growing evidence suggests that rhythmic physical activity (PA) improves cognitive function in both persons with normal brain aging and with cognitive impairment. This study aims to conduct a systematic review of randomized controlled trials assessing the effects of rhythmic PA over global cognition in older adults with and without mild cognitive impairment. Different keywords related to the topic and Boolean operators were used in the Web of Science, PubMed, and Scopus databases. A total of 11 articles that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed; all of them assessed global cognition using either the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) or the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). Five studies showed beneficial effects over global cognition. All studies had at least one experimental group with rhythmic training, and the interventions evidenced a great diversity of rhythmic stimuli, as well as a varied frequency, duration and type of activities. The heterogeneity of the protocols could be the reason for the mixed findings. Future studies with more precise exercise prescriptions are needed to establish whether rhythmic PA has beneficial effects on global cognition.

Physical exercise has been established as an intervention in the integral approach for the physical, functional, and social health of older adults. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of a high-intensity functional training (HIFT) program on the physical condition and functional capacity of an elderly Colombian population with mild cognitive impairment. This research corresponds to a blind randomized controlled clinical trial. A total of 169 men and women aged over 65 years were evaluated and distributed in two groups: the experimental group that received a 12-week HIFT intervention (n = 82) and the control group (n = 87) that received general recommendations on the benefits of physical exercise. The outcome variables included physical condition, assessed using the Senior Fitness battery (SNB); Fried’s frailty phenotype was applied, and gait and balance were assessed using the Tinetti scale. For the functional variables, activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, and advanced activities of daily living were evaluated. All variables were measured pre- and post-intervention. Statistically significant improvements were observed in the IG for gait stability and balance (p < 0.001), as well as for independence in activities of daily living (p = 0.003), and instrumental and advanced activities (p < 0.001). Likewise, greater functionality was found when assessed with the SNB (p < 0.001), except for upper limb strength. The frailty classification did not show changes post-intervention (p = 0.170) nor in the group x time interaction. MANCOVA analysis showed that regardless of gender, health level, age, BMI, cognition, and health level, the HIFT intervention produced better results in functional capacity, balance, and gait (F = 0.173, p < 0.001, Wilks’ λ = 88.231).

During the COVID-19 pandemic, psychological disorders have been documented in the population, and their exacerbation in vulnerable populations such as those with Cardiometabolic Diseases (CD) might challenge health systems. This study determined psychological factors associated with CD in Colombian adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, 284 persons were evaluated, 142 without CD and 142 with CD. Sociodemographic data were collected, and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the SF-12v2, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (ZSDS), which were integrated into an online form, were used. Through a simple and multiple logistic regression model, it was shown that CD was associated with low sleeping quality (LSQ) (OR = 3.51) and with depressive symptoms (DS) (OR = 1.98). In addition, in the group with CD, the presence of DS was related to BMI (OR = 2.45), and LSQ was related to living with persons at risk for COVID-19 (OR = 3.64) and BMI (OR = 5.88). In conclusion, this study showed that people with CD have a higher chance of presenting DS and LSQ. Furthermore, living with people at risk for COVID-19 was related to the presence of LSQ.