(1) Helping both target groups (professionals and older adults) gain knowledge about motivating others to become more active and developing skills regarding the implementation of physical activity with older adults. (2) The access to educational material and learning opportunities aims to break down barriers and strengthen the learner’s confidence in regard to this field of work.
Despite the highly publicized benefits of physical activity, the overwhelming majority of older people in Europe does not meet physical activity levels needed to maintain health. Indeed, only just a quarter of people aged over 65 years meet the minimum recommended activity levels needed to maintain health. The sedentary lifestyles that predominate in older age results in premature onset of ill health, disease and frailty. These facts coincide with world-wide policy interest in the promotion of physical and mental wellbeing for people in third age, and the compression of morbidity into fewer years of later life, driven by concerns about increasing expenditure on health and social care in an ageing society. The social inclusion and empowerment of the ageing population can bring significant benefits to social and economic aspects, different demands for health-related products and services and for an overall reorganization of leisure. The promotion of healthy ageing is thus a growing policy priority. In our interactions with older adults, but also with professionals working with them, we noticed a lack of knowledge about this, connected with insecurities how to motivate older adults for being more active.