In order to increase health consciousness and to help establish physical activity in their lives, we taught physical exercise to rural housewives for one year. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of the exercise on health. The subjects were 28 rural housewives between 41 and 65 years of age. Height, weight, grip strength, shoulder and arm strength, back strength, vital capacity, vertical jump, and closed-eyes foot balance were assessed both before and after the instruction period. Questionnaires were also administered. The results were as follows: 1) Compared to a sample of the Physical Fitness Standards of Japanese People in 1980, the back strength, vital capacity, and closed-eyes foot balance of the rural housewives were inferior. However, the scores improved markedly after the one year of instruction in physical activity. 2) It is recognized that there were a few housewives who normally spent their spare time doing light exercises or participating in sports throughout the year.
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