This 4-week, single arm usability study demonstrates that preference-driven mobile exercise management is not only feasible but also holds promise for promoting exercise engagement in community-dwelling individuals with MCI.
The mobile exercise management application demonstrated good usability among older adults with mild cognitive impairment.
Two specific usability optimization targets were identified: functional integration and initial technical support needs.
Exercise adherence was high among participants using the preference-driven application.
Exercise preference agreement rates were high for environment and modality, but showed considerable variability.
There was a strong positive correlation between exercise environment and modality preference agreement rates.
Preference agreement rates were not associated with exercise adherence.
The study employed a three-phase mixed-methods development process to create the application.
Technology adoption barriers and memory-associated challenges were identified as important considerations for this population.
This research describes the development and initial testing of a smartphone app designed to help older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) — a condition involving noticeable memory and thinking changes that can progress to dementia — stay physically active. The app was built around each person's own exercise preferences, letting them choose where and how they like to exercise. Twelve older adults with MCI used the app for four weeks, and the results showed the app was easy enough to use (scoring well on a standard usability scale), with most participants completing 100% of their weekly exercise goals and three-quarters meeting or exceeding those goals. The two main areas needing improvement were the variety of exercise types offered and the amount of technical help provided at the start. The research also found that when participants exercised in their preferred environment, they also tended to stick to their preferred type of exercise — these two preferences moved together in a strongly correlated way. However, whether someone matched their exercise preferences did not predict how well they stuck to their overall exercise goals, suggesting that factors beyond preference-matching influence adherence. The study also noted that challenges like low confidence with technology and memory difficulties common in MCI may need to be addressed with additional support strategies. This research suggests that building exercise apps around personal preferences is feasible and potentially useful for people with MCI, a group that often struggles to maintain regular physical activity. Because exercise may help slow the progression of cognitive decline, tools that make it easier to stay active could be meaningful for this population. However, the study was small (12 people) and short (4 weeks), so larger and longer studies are needed to understand whether preference-based apps truly improve long-term exercise habits and cognitive outcomes.
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Upload Your LabsYang Y, Zhou S, Li Z, Chen Z, Chen Z, Sun H, et al.. (2026). A mobile exercise management application based on exercise preferences in older adults with mild cognitive impairment: a development and usability study.. BMC geriatrics. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-026-07645-x