A pilot holistic exercise protocol for improving quality of life

This study aimed to investigate the effects of a new HMP method, a mind–body exercise protocol, on health-related Quality of Life(QoL) in adults and to explore possible differences by gender and age. A pilot longitudinal study was conducted involving 171 adults (female: 151, male: 20) who completed a 10-week exercise program consisting of one supervised session per week. The protocol integrated self-body awareness, postural control, breathing regulation, muscle activation–relaxation, and multisensory stimulation exercises. Quality of life was assessed before and after the intervention using the Italian version of the SF-36 Health Survey. A two-way ANCOVA was used to evaluate pre-post changes, accounting for the interaction between gender and age categories.Significant improvements were observed across several SF-36 domains following the intervention. Notable gains were observed in physical functioning, role-physical, bodily pain, general health, vitality, and mental health, with medium to large effect sizes in the physical domains. Improvements were independent of gender and age, although an interaction effect between gender and age emerged for physical functioning in the oldest participants.The proposed method appears to be an effective, low-dose HMP, suggesting that it may enhance multiple dimensions of adult QoL. These preliminary findings support the potential role of mind–body practices as accessible health-promotion strategies.