BACKGROUND: Sarcopenia is a syndrome associated with aging that causes progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and muscle function. In this pilot study, we compared the effectiveness of elastic band training regarding group-based dance on fat mass, fat-free mass, handgrip strength (HGS; dominant and non-dominant hand), leg strength, timed up-and-go (TUG) and walking speed in older women with sarcopenia. METHODS: This is a randomized controlled trial, single-blind, repeated measures of parallel groups (elastic band group: EBG, n = 21; group-based dance: GBD, n = 19), and a quantitative methodology. Three 60-minute sessions per week for 12 weeks were dedicated to the interventions with pre- and post-assessments. A two-factor mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) model with repeated measures was performed to measure the groupxtime effect. RESULTS: A significant interaction revealed for fat-free mass (F[1,16 = 18.91; p < 0.001; EBG +10.9% versus GBD -1.97%), HGS dominant hand (F[1,16] = 7.44; p = 0.014; EBG +10.9% versus GBD +0.59%), HGS non-dominant hand (F[1,16] = 6.41; p = 0.022; EBG +10.21% versus GBD +3.80%), leg strength (F1,16 = 17.98; p < 0.001; EBG +9.1% versus GBD +3.83%), TUG (F[1,16] = 7.52; p = 0.014; EBG -14.7% versus GBD -1.0%) and walking speed (F[1,16] = 6.40; p = 0.019; EBG -7.6% versus GBD -4.35%) in favor of EBG. CONCLUSION: Elastic band training produces significantly greater responses on physical-functional performance regarding group-based dance in older women with sarcopenia. On the other hand, the EBG revealed a significant improvement in fat-free mass and upper and lower limb muscle strength, as well as a significant decrease time in TUG, and walking speed. Elastic band exercise is a safe, easy, affordable, and effective physical activity strategy, according to the findings.

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