Movement-based Strategies for Enhancing Functional Health: Evidence Across the Lifespan

Movement-based interventions form a critical axis in the field of health promotion, prevention, and rehabilitation throughout every stage of life. Although the health benefits of physical activity are well established, ranging from improved cardiovascular function and body composition to increased mobility and quality of life, gaps persist in the comparative effectiveness of different movement-based modalities within authentic, real-world settings. Recent evidence underscores the importance of well-designed interventions in educational, clinical, and community environments, including school-based programs, mind-body practices, and technology-driven modalities like exergaming. Despite a growing body of research, there remains an incomplete understanding of which interventions deliver the most robust and sustainable improvements in physical function and independence when transferred from controlled trials to broader, diverse populations. Moreover, although nutritional support is widely recognized as an adjunct to physical and functional recovery, questions remain regarding how best to integrate these elements synergistically.This Research Topic aims to synthesize and compare the effectiveness of various non-pharmacological, movement-based interventions, such as strength and multicomponent training, adapted sports, and mind-body practices, across different age groups and population settings, including those with specific clinical needs. It seeks to clarify how these interventions influence outcomes like physical fitness, body composition, mobility, postural balance, strength, independence in activities of daily living, and overall health-related quality of life. Furthermore, the Research Topic encourages systematic exploration of how dietary counseling and nutritional strategies can serve as supportive measures to maximize the benefits of movement-based programs, particularly in the context of functional recovery, rehabilitation, or physical performance in daily life.The scope of this Research Topic encompasses comparative, outcome-driven studies conducted in diverse, real-world educational, clinical, and community settings. Its focus excludes nutrition as a primary or standalone intervention, sports supplementation, and cognition or mental health as dominant endpoints. To gather further insights in these boundaries, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:o Comparative effectiveness of movement-based interventions across the life course.o Multicomponent and adjunct mind-body or exergaming interventions in physical education and rehabilitation.o Nutritional care as a supportive strategy for functional and physical recovery.o School-based and community-based physical exercise programs for children, adolescents, and older people.o Implementation science: translation of interventions to real-world educational or clinical practice.o Assessment of outcomes including physical fitness, physical function, body composition, strength, postural balance, independence, and quality of life.o Application in diverse populations, including healthy groups and those with overweight/obesity or neurological/functional impairments.We welcome Original Research, Randomized Controlled Trials, Longitudinal Studies, Systematic Reviews, Meta-Analyses, and Scoping Reviews relevant to these comparative intervention themes. Topic editors: Pablo Valdés-Badilla, Jordan Hernandez Martinez, Braulio Henrique Magnani Branco Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80359/movement-based-strategies-for-enhancing-functional-health-evidence-across-the-lifespan