Effect of Field Dimension on Energy Expenditure and Exercise Intensity During Walking Football in Older Adults.
4 affiliations
- 1Well-Move Research Group, Galicia Sur Health Research Institute (IIS Galicia Sur), SERGAS-UVIGO, Vigo, España.
- 2Departamento de Didácticas Especiáis, Universidade de Vigo, Vigo, España.
- 3Fútbol a Pé, Cangas, España.
- 4Faculty of Education and Sport Sciences, Sports Research Institute (CIDEGA), University of Vigo, Pontevedra, Spain.
Abstract
Walking football (WF) is an adapted low-impact form of traditional football designed to promote physical activity and social interaction among older adults. However, evidence on its physiological demands-particularly energy expenditure expressed in metabolic equivalents (METs)-remains limited. This cross-sectional experimental study aimed to estimate the energy expenditure of WF in older adults and to examine whether field dimensions influence the exercise intensity of the game. Twenty recreational male WF players (mean age = 66.8 ± 6.5 years) participated in 6-a-side matches on two official field sizes. Physical activity and accelerometry-derived estimates of energy expenditure and METs were monitored using wrist-worn triaxial accelerometers (Axivity AX3). Subjective enjoyment was assessed using the feeling scale (FS). Mean energy expenditure was 6.79 ± 1.30 kcal·min⁻¹ (4.81 ± 0.91 METs) on the large field and 6.58 ± 1.36 kcal·min⁻¹ (4.66 ± 0.91 METs) on the small field, with no significant differences between conditions. Participants spent a greater proportion of time in motion on the larger field (ES: 0.340; p < 0.05), whereas enjoyment (FS) was significantly higher on the smaller field (ES: 0.708; p < 0.05). Walking speed averaged 0.8 m·s⁻¹ across both formats. Strong correlations were found between steps, cadence, and METs (rho > 0.70, p < 0.01). WF elicits a moderate-intensity physical activity response (≈4.5 METs) in older adults, independent of field size. These findings primarily support the feasibility of WF as a moderate-intensity community-based intervention, while suggesting that field-size manipulation within normative ranges has limited physiological impact.
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BibTeX
@article{varela2026effect,
title = {{Effect of Field Dimension on Energy Expenditure and Exercise Intensity During Walking Football in Older Adults.}},
author = {Silvia Varela and Nerea Blanco-Martínez and José María Rial Chapela and Carlos Ayán-Pérez},
journal = {European journal of sport science},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1002/ejsc.70223},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/43007881},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Effect of Field Dimension on Energy Expenditure and Exercise Intensity During Walking Football in Older Adults.
AU - Silvia Varela
AU - Nerea Blanco-Martínez
AU - José María Rial Chapela
AU - Carlos Ayán-Pérez
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/12
JO - European journal of sport science
DO - 10.1002/ejsc.70223
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/43007881
AB - Walking football (WF) is an adapted low-impact form of traditional football designed to promote physical activity and social interaction among older adults. However, evidence on its physiological demands-particularly energy expenditure expressed in metabolic equivalents (METs)-remains limited. This cross-sectional experimental study aimed to estimate the energy expenditure of WF in older adults and to examine whether field dimensions influence the exercise intensity of the game. Twenty recreational male WF players (mean age = 66.8 ± 6.5 years) participated in 6-a-side matches on two official field sizes. Physical activity and accelerometry-derived estimates of energy expenditure and METs were monitored using wrist-worn triaxial accelerometers (Axivity AX3). Subjective enjoyment was assessed using the feeling scale (FS). Mean energy expenditure was 6.79 ± 1.30 kcal·min⁻¹ (4.81 ± 0.91 METs) on the large field and 6.58 ± 1.36 kcal·min⁻¹ (4.66 ± 0.91 METs) on the small field, with no significant differences between conditions. Participants spent a greater proportion of time in motion on the larger field (ES: 0.340; p < 0.05), whereas enjoyment (FS) was significantly higher on the smaller field (ES: 0.708; p < 0.05). Walking speed averaged 0.8 m·s⁻¹ across both formats. Strong correlations were found between steps, cadence, and METs (rho > 0.70, p < 0.01). WF elicits a moderate-intensity physical activity response (≈4.5 METs) in older adults, independent of field size. These findings primarily support the feasibility of WF as a moderate-intensity community-based intervention, while suggesting that field-size manipulation within normative ranges has limited physiological impact.
SN - 1746-1391
SN - 1536-7290
ER -