Effectiveness of exercise on cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease

Physical activity has a protective effect on brain function in older people. Here, we briefly reviewed the studies and results related to the effects of exercise on cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. The main findings from the current body of literature indicate positive evidence for structured physical activity (cardiorespiratory and resistance exercise) as a promising non-pharmacological intervention for preventing cognitive decline. More studies are needed to determine the mechanisms involved in this preventative effect, including on strength, cardiorespiratory, and other types of exercise. Thus, the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease may depend on healthy lifestyle habits, such as a structured physical fitness program

The interactions between hemostasis and resistance training: a review

Physical inactivity is considered a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is strongly associated with changes in arterial structure. Regular physical activity and exercise contributes to the prevention of coronary artery disease. Therefore, cardiovascular and resistance training improve hemostatic parameters and promote a less thrombotic blood profile. This review highlights the studies, mechanisms, and outcomes relating to the effectiveness of resistance training on the process of hemostasis. The Pubmed, Scopus, Medline, Scielo, Lilacs, Ibecs, and Cochrane databases were used to locate the original articles. Seventeen studies were found during the research process. Of these, ten articles were excluded. Those protocols using a high volume of training for young adults showed a greater fibrinolytic response, and training protocols with intensities above 80% of 1 maximum repetition showed an increased platelet activity. In subjects with coronary artery disease, just one session of resistance training resulted in improvement in the fibrinolytic system (tissue plasminogen activator) without raising potential thrombotic markers

Low dynamic muscle strength and its associations with fatigue, functional performance, and quality of life in premenopausal patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and low disease activity : a case–control study

Background: The purpose of the present study was to compare dynamic muscle strength, functional performance, fatigue, and quality of life in premenopausal systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients with low disease activity versus matched-healthy controls and to determine the association of dynamic muscle strength with fatigue, functional performance, and quality of life in SLE patients. Methods: We evaluated premenopausal (18–45 years) SLE patients with low disease activity (Systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index [SLEDAI]: mean 1.5 ± 1.2). The control (n = 25) and patient (n = 25) groups were matched by age, physical characteristics, and the level of physical activities in daily life (International Physical Activity Questionnaire IPAQ). Both groups had not participated in regular exercise programs for at least six months prior to the study. Dynamic muscle strength was assessed by one-repetition maximum (1-RM) tests. Functional performance was assessed by the Timed Up and Go (TUG), in 30-s test a chair stand and arm curl using a 2-kg dumbbell and balance test, handgrip strength and a sit-and-reach flexibility test. Quality of life (SF-36) and fatigue were also measured. Results: The SLE patients showed significantly lower dynamic muscle strength in all exercises (leg press 25.63%, leg extension 11.19%, leg curl 15.71%, chest press 18.33%, lat pulldown 13.56%, 1-RM total load 18.12%, P < 0.001-0.02) compared to the controls. The SLE patients also had lower functional performance, greater fatigue and poorer quality of life. In addition, fatigue, SF-36 and functional performance accounted for 52% of the variance in dynamic muscle strength in the SLE patients. Conclusions: Premenopausal SLE patients with low disease activity showed lower dynamic muscle strength, along with increased fatigue, reduced functional performance, and poorer quality of life when compared to matched controls

Resistance training versus weight-bearing aquatic exercise : a cross-sectional analysis of bone mineral density in postmenopausal women

INTRODUÇÃO: Há um grande número de estudos mostrando que o treinamento de força tem um efeito positivo sobre a densidade mineral óssea (DMO). Porém, existem poucos estudos comparando a DMO entre praticantes de hidroginástica e treinamento de força. OBJETIVO: Comparar, em uma análise transversal, a DMO de mulheres praticantes de treinamento de força com mulheres praticantes de hidroginástica, na pós-menopausa. MÉTODOS: A amostra foi composta de 63 mulheres, divididas em três grupos: treinamento de força (FORÇA: n = 15; 51,4 ± 2,7 anos), hidroginástica (HIDRO: n = 22; 54,5 ± 3,3 anos) e controles não treinadas (CONTROLE: n = 26; 52,0 ± 3,3 anos). Todas as voluntárias estavam em terapia de reposição hormonal há no mínimo um ano. Os grupos FORÇA e HIDRO treinavam há pelo menos um ano antes do início do estudo (média de anos de treinamento - FORÇA: 4,5 ± 2,0; HIDRO: 4,2 ± 2,2). RESULTADOS: O grupo FORÇA apresentou maior DMO de corpo total, colo femoral e coluna lombar L2-L4 quando comparado ao grupo-controle (todos P < 0,05). O grupo HIDRO apresentou maior DMO no corpo total, quadril total e coluna lombar L2-L4 quando comparado ao grupo-controle (todos P < 0,05). Entretanto, não foram observadas diferenças entre os grupos FORÇA e HIDRO em nenhum dos sítios avaliados. CONCLUSÕES: Estes achados sugerem que não apenas o treinamento de força, mas também a hidroginástica podem ser estratégias não farmacológicas para prevenção da perda de DMO em mulheres na pós-menopausa.INTRODUCTION: Many studies have shown that resistance training has a positive effect on bone mineral density (BMD). However, few studies have compared the BMD of individuals undergoing resistance training and those training aquatic weight-bearing exercises. OBJECTIVE: To compare, in a cross-sectional study, the BMD of postmenopausal women undergoing resistance training and postmenopausal women training aquatic weight-bearing exercises. METHODS: The sample comprised 63 women divided into the following three groups: resistance training (STRENGTH: n = 15; 51.4 ± 2.7 years); aquatic weight-bearing exercises (WA-TER: n = 22; 54.5 ± 3.3 years); and non-trained controls (CONTROL: n = 26; 52.0 ± 3.3 years). All volunteers were on hormone replacement therapy for at least one year. The STRENGTH and WATER groups were training for at least one year prior to study beginning (mean years of training - STRENGTH: 4.5 ± 2.0; WATER: 4.2 ± 2.2). RESULTS: The STRENGTH group had higher BMD of total body, femoral neck, lumbar spine L2-L4 as compared with the CONTROL group (all P < 0.05). The WATER group had higher BMD of total body, total hip, lumbar spine L2-L4 as compared with the CONTROL group (all P < 0.05). However, no difference was observed between the STRENGTH and WATER groups regarding the sites assessed. CONCLUSIONS: Those findings suggest that not only the resistance training, but also aquatic weight-bearing exercises might be a non-pharmacological strategy to prevent BMD loss in postmenopausal women

Resistance exercise leading to failure versus not to failure : effects on cardiovascular control

Background: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the acute effects of resistance exercise (RE) leading to failure and RE that was not to failure on 24 h blood pressure (BP) and heart rate variability (HRV) in sedentary normotensive adult women. Methods: Ten women (33.2 ± 5.8 years; 159.3 ± 9.4 cm; 58.0 ±6.4 kg; body fat 28.4 ± 2.8%) randomly underwent three experimental sessions: control (40 minutes of seated rest), RE leading to failure with 3 sets of 10 repetitions maximum (10-RM), and RE not to failure at 60% of 10-RM with 3 sets of 10 repetitions. Immediately post session BP and HRV were measured for 24 h. Results: Ratings of perceived exertion and heart rate were higher during the 10-RM session when compared with 60% of 10-RM (6.4 ± 0.5 vs 3.5 ± 0.8 and 123.7 ± 13.9 vs 104.5 ± 7.3 bpm, respectively). The systolic, diastolic and mean BP decreased at 07:00 a.m. after the 10-RM session when compared with the control session (−9.0 ± 7.8 mmHg, -16.0 ± 12.9 mmHg and −14.3 ± 11.2 mmHg, respectively). The root mean square of the squared differences between R-R intervals decreased after both the 60% of 10-RM and 10-RM sessions compared with the control session. Conclusions: An acute RE session leading to failure induced a higher drop of BP upon awakening, while both RE sessions reduced cardiac parasympathetic modulation. RE may be an interesting training strategy to acutely decrease BP in adult women

RELAÇÃO ENTRE OBESIDADE, PRESSÃO ARTERIAL E FORÇA MUSCULAR DE IDOSAS OBESAS HIPERTENSAS

A hipertensão é uma doença complexa e multifatorial no qual fatores de risco como obesidade estão envolvidos. Cerca de 48% da população brasileira feminina já apresenta sobrepeso, sendo que a prevalência de excesso de peso acomete 58% da população com idade maior ou igual a 65 anos de idade. Deve-se considerar que a obesidade é um fator de risco para hipertensão nessa população. Em mulheres de meia idade já se verifica também a sua influência negativa sobre a força muscular, sugerindo reprodutibilidade dos resultados nessa população. O objetivo desse estudo é determinar se existe uma relação negativa do IMC sobre a força muscular e pressão arterial de idosas hipertensas e comparar a força muscular de idosas hipertensas com e sem obesidade. Quarenta e oito idosas sedentárias e hipertensas participaram voluntariamente do estudo e foram divididas em dois grupos: grupo com IMC &lt; 30,0 (kg/m²) e com IMC ≥ 30,0 (kg/m²). Os resultados do estudo demonstraram que o grupo de idosas obesas apresentou significativamente maior pressão arterial sistólica (p ≤ 0,05), pressão arterial diastólica (p ≤ 0,05), medidas antropométricas supe-riores (p ≤ 0,05) e menor força muscular (p ≤ 0,05) quando comparado com idosas com IMC &lt; 30,0 (kg/m²). Ademais, o IMC correlacionou-se negativamente com a força muscular e positivamente com a pressão arterial na população estudada. O presente estudo apresenta indícios de que o IMC influencia negativamente a força muscular e pressão arterial de mulheres idosas obesas. Além disso, sugere o ponto de corte de IMC &gt; 30 kg/m² como critério prático para avaliar seu efeito nega-tivo sobre a força muscular e pressão arterial de idosas hipertensas

Relation of neck circumference and relative muscle strength and cardiovascular risk factors in sedentary women

OBJETIVO: O objetivo do presente estudo foi verificar a relação da circunferência do pescoço com a força muscular relativa e os fatores de risco cardiovascular em mulheres sedentárias. MÉTODOS: Estudo transversal, realizado com 60 mulheres pré-menopausadas (33,9±9,1 anos; 67,4±13,6kg; 1,57±0,06cm e 27,2±5,3kg/m²). Com base no valor da circunferência do pescoço, a amostra foi dividida em dois grupos: Grupo Circunferência <35cm (n=27) e Grupo Circunferência &gt;35cm (n=33), para efeito de comparação da força muscular relativa e dos fatores de risco cardiovascular. A correlação entre as variáveis foi testada por meio da correlação de Pearson e de Spearman; o nível de significância foi estabelecido em p<0,05. RESULTADOS: Os resultados demonstram que as mulheres com circunferência do pescoço &gt;35cm apresentaram maiores valores de massa corporal, circunferência da cintura, índice de adiposidade corporal, índice de massa corporal, pressão arterial sistólica, glicemia, hemoglobina glicada e volume de gordura visceral, quando comparadas ao grupo com circunferência do pescoço <35cm. Adicionalmente, o grupo com maior circunferência do pescoço apresentou menores valores de força relativa. CONCLUSÃO: A circunferência do pescoço parece ser um importante fator de predição de risco cardiovascular e perda de força relativa em mulheres sedentárias de meia idade.OBJECTIVE: To verify the relation of neck circumference and relative muscle strength and cardiovascular risk factors in sedentary women. METHODS: A cross-sectional study with 60 premenopausal women (33.9±9.1 years; 67.4±13.6kg; 1.57±0.6cm and 27.2±5.3kg/m²). Based on the neck circumference, the sample was divided into two groups: Group Circumference <35cm (n=27) and Group Circumference &gt;35cm (n=33) to compare relative muscle strength and cardiovascular risk factors. The correlation between variables was tested by Pearson and Spearman correlations, with a significance level established at p<0.05. RESULTS: The findings revealed that women with neck circumference &gt;35cm presented higher values of body mass, waist circumference, body adiposity index, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin and volume of visceral fat when compared with the group with neck circumference <35cm. Additionally, the group with larger neck circumference presented lower values of relative strength. CONCLUSION: Neck circumference seems to be an important predictive factor of cardiovascular risk and of relative strength loss in middle-aged sedentary women

Assessment of functional capacity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis : implications for recommending exercise

A artrite reumatoide (AR) é uma doença autoimune que se caracteriza por poliartrite crônica simétrica, de grandes e pequenas articulações, e rigidez matinal que pode levar a comprometimento musculoesquelético, com impotência funcional. O conceito da funcionalidade diz respeito à capacidade de o indivíduo realizar atividades e tarefas da vida diária e cotidiana, de forma eficaz e independente. O objetivo desta revisão é familiarizar o reumatologista com o conceito de avaliação da capacidade funcional e os testes que podem ser aplicados nessa população, pois são passos importantes para uma prescrição adequada de exercícios físicos, A partir de testes funcionais já utilizados em população idosa, o Laboratório de Aptidão Física e Reumatologia - LAR - Brasília, que acompanha os pacientes da Coorte Brasília de Artrite Reumatoide Inicial, descreve neste artigo um protocolo de testes para avaliação da capacidade funcional para aplicação nos pacientes com diagnóstico de AR, incluindo a descrição dos seguintes testes: 1) Sentar e Alcançar; 2) Agilidade/Equilíbrio Dinâmico; 3) Dinamometria Manual; 4) Sentar e Levantar; 5) Rosca Bíceps e 6) Teste da Caminhada de Seis Minutos.Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterized by chronic symmetric polyarthritis of large and small joints and by morning stiffness that may lead to musculoskeletal impairment, with functional impotence. The concept of functionality relates to the ability of an individual to perform effectively and independently daily activities and tasks of everyday life. The aim of this review is to familiarize the rheumatologist with the concept of functional capacity evaluation and with the tests that can be applied in this population, as these are important steps for a proper exercise prescription. From functional tests already used in the elderly population, the Physical Fitness and Rheumatology Laboratory - LAR - Brasilia, which is accompanying patients from Brasilia Cohort of Early Rheumatoid Arthritis, describes in this article a protocol of tests to assess functional capacity for application in patients with RA, including the description of tests: 1) Sit and Reach; 2) Agility/Dynamic Balance; 3) Manual Dynamometry; 4) Sit Back and Lift; 5) Biceps Curl and 6) Six-minute Walk Test