OBJETIVO: Identificar o estado de saúde mental de idosos iniciantes em um programa de exercício físico e analisar a associação entre os indicadores sociodemográficos com a pontuação das escalas geriátricas. MÉTODOS: Participaram do estudo 121 idosos, com idade média de 68,69 ± 6,46 anos, cadastrados nos Centros de Saúde de Florianópolis/SC. Aplicou-se o Mini-Exame do Estado Mental (MEEM) e a escala de depressão geriátrica (GDS). RESULTADOS: a prevalência de transtornos cognitivos foi de 9,1% e de depressão de 17,4%. Tanto a escolaridade quanto a renda apresentaram associação estatística significativas com a pontuação do MEEM (p OBJECTIVE: To identify the mental health status of elderly people starting out on an exercise program and to analyze the relationship between socio-demographic and economic indicators and scores on geriatric assessment scales. METHODS: The study enrolled 121 elderly people, with a mean age of 68.69±6.46 years, registered at Health Centers in Florianopolis. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) were applied to these subjects. RESULTS: The prevalence of cognition disorders was 9.1% and the prevalence of depression was 17.4%. Both educational level and income exhibited statistically significant associations with MMSE scores (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). None of the variables studied (marital status, age and income) were associated with GDS scores (p = 0.986, p = 0.226, p = 0.302), respectively. A significant inverse relationship was observed between MMSE and GDS scores (r = -0.201; p = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: There were significant prevalence rates of both depression and cognitive disorders among elderly people beginning a physical exercise program. In this population, the higher the educational level and income, the better the performance on the MMSE scale. It was also detected that individuals who exhibited depressive symptoms scored lower than normal on the MMSE.