[Male participation in types of physical activities of a program for the elderly: a longitudinal study]

The article seeks to describe male participation on a physical activity program for the elderly in the south of Brazil over a ten-year period (2003-2013). The data of the study were extracted from a database and assessed using descriptive and inferential statistics and assessment of the thematic content. The first phase of the study was longitudinal (from 2003 to 2013) with 163 elderly participants, while the second phase was cross-sectional for the year of 2013 with 45 elderly individuals. Male participation was, on average, 3.5 times lower than female participation for all years assessed, and the activity most practiced was swimming. In the year 2013, the average age of the elderly men was 68 ± 7.8 years. Most of them are married, have tertiary education, good acquisitive power, positive self perception of health, one or more diagnosed diseases, and do not participate in any other physical activity outside the program. According to the elderly, the reasons for participating most cited was the search for quality of life and health and, for continuing to exercise, acquiring the taste for the physical activity. Understanding the profile of these individuals and of the reasons that motivate them are important tools to comprehend the issue and help to define public politics directed at this population group.