Being physically active was defined as participating in vigorous physical activity at least three times per week.
"These instrumental activities of daily living can be important determinants of quality of life among stroke patients, so it is important to find factors which reduce the risk of dependence in these activities as well as in basic activities of daily living," she told Reuters Health by email.
Rist's team studied 18,117 individuals participating in the national Health and Retirement Study in an effort to find out whether physical activity and body mass index (BMI), a common measure of overweight and obesity, could predict disability.
During 12 years of follow-up, the amount of physical activity people did was not associated with the risk of stroke, but it was associated with the likelihood of being independent three years after a stroke.
Those who were physically inactive at baseline were significantly less likely to be independent at that point, compared with those who were physically active at baseline.