Introduction:

The practice of systematic physical activities favors the control of chronic activities and improves the general health status of older adults; constitutes a priority in care programs for the elderly.

Objective:

To implement a health intervention in older adults in the Riobamba canton to encourage the practice of systematic physical activities and the control of nutritional status.

Methods:

Applied research was carried out, with a quasi-experimental and descriptive design that included a total of 527 elderly residents in the Maldonado parish of the Riobamba canton as a universe. The sample was made up of 223 elderlies. A health intervention was applied, with theoretical and practical activities that lasted 7 months. McNemar's non-parametric test was used to identify the presence of statistically significant changes in the different research variables.

Result:

average age of 67.49 years, with a predominance of female older adults (63.68 %) and with the presence of comorbidities (83.86 %). At the beginning of the investigation, 72.20 % of older adults did not perform physical activities, 41.26% were overweight and the level of knowledge about the importance of physical exercise was low (64.13 %). During the post-test, older adults with normal weight (50.67 %) and with a medium level of knowledge (51.12 %) predominated in relation to the importance of physical activities for maintaining health.

Conclusions:

The applied health intervention, based on the performance of physical activities, improved the nutritional status and the level of knowledge of the elderly in relation to the importance of practicing systematic physical activities.

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