Comparison of Mat Pilates training-induced changes on climateric symptoms in hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women.

INTRODUCTION: Physical exercise has been used to improve the physiological, metabolic and psychological factors of women. OBJECTIVE: the aim of this study was to compare the 12-week Mat Pilates training-induced effect on climacteric symptoms in hypertensive and normotensive, non-obese postmenopausal women. METHODS: Forty-seven irregularly active, non-obese postmenopausal women participated in the study: 24 normotensive (58 ± 4 years) and 23 hypertensive (58 ± 4 years). They underwent 36 sessions of Mat Pilates in nonconsecutive days during 12 weeks. Climacteric symptoms were assessed by the Cervantes Scale (CER), Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) and Blatt-Kupperman Menopause Index (B-K). The unpaired t-test compared the clinical characteristics between the groups. For the analysis of the questionnaires, the Spearman correlation and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare the means between the groups for non-parametric data. The generalized estimates equation (GEE) was used to compare the groups and time to score the three general and domain questionnaires. The significance level adopted was ɑ = 0.05. RESULTS: No difference in the Mat Pilates training-induced changes were found between normotensive and hypertensive women, but there was a significant reduction in the scores of the B-K and MRS and in the percentage of disappearance of symptoms by the B-K after training in both groups. Regarding the CER, there was a reduction in symptoms in the total value and the psychological, menopause and health domains. CONCLUSION: The presence of hypertension did not change the 12-week Mat Pilates training-induced benefits on the climacteric symptoms of non-obese postmenopausal women.

Mat Pilates training reduces blood pressure in both well-controlled hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women: a controlled clinical trial study.

AIM: The aim of this study was to compare the Mat Pilates training-induced responses in resting and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), blood pressure variability (BPV), and heart rate variability (HRV) in well-controlled hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women. METHODS: Forty-seven postmenopausal women were allocated in well-controlled hypertensive (HT) and normotensive (NT) groups. The exercise program was performed three times a week for 12 weeks. Before and after the intervention resting, blood pressure (BP), ABPM, HRV, and BPV were analyzed. RESULTS: Student's t-test showed no difference in baseline anthropometric and resting BP values between groups. The generalized estimation equation (GEE) showed no interactions (group*time), but time (p < .05) reductions in resting systolic, diastolic and mean BP after training in both groups. Sleep ambulatory systolic, diastolic and mean BP were higher overall in the HT group (p < .05 in group effect). We also found a time effect (p < .05) with significant increases in BPV in the mean diurnal and nocturnal deviations weighted for the duration of the daytime and nighttime interval (SDdn) in systolic, diastolic and mean BP, and in the average real variability (ARV) in diastolic and mean in both groups. In addition, HRV increases (p < .05 in time effect) through the percentage of pairs of adjacent RR intervals with a difference of at least 50 ms (pNN50) after training in both groups. CONCLUSION: Both normotensive and well-controlled hypertensive postmenopausal women may have similar Mat Pilates exercise training-induced responses in ambulatory BP, BPV and HRV.

Mat Pilates training and blood pressure reactivity responses to psychological stress: comparison between normotensive and hypertensive postmenopausal women.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to compare resting blood pressure and blood pressure reactivity responses to psychological stress in normotensive and hypertensive postmenopausal women after 12 weeks of Mat Pilates training. METHODS: Twenty-three hypertensive and 24 normotensive postmenopausal women, performed Mat Pilates training 3× a week for 12 weeks. Before and after the intervention, resting blood pressure, heart rate, and blood pressure reactivity to psychological stress through the electronic version of Stroop test protocol (3 minutes) were measured. We calculated the variation (Δ) of blood pressure (peak of blood pressure during the Stroop stress test minus resting blood pressure before test). RESULTS: The two-way ANOVA showed that the Δ of systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and the mean blood pressure was reduced ( P < 0.05) after training only in the hypertensive. The resting systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressures decreased by ( P < 0.05) over time in both groups with no interaction or difference. CONCLUSION: Mat Pilates was able to reduce resting blood pressure in both hypertensive and normotensive, and blood pressure reactivity after psychological stress in hypertensive but not in normotensive postmenopausal women.

Acute and chronic effects of combined exercise on ambulatory blood pressure and its variability in hypertensive postmenopausal women.

The aim of this study was to investigate the acute and chronic effects, and their correlation, after combined aerobic and resistance exercises in blood pressure (BP) and its variability (BPV) in hypertensive postmenopausal women. Fourteen hypertensive postmenopausal women monitored BP at rest and during 24 h by ambulatory BP monitoring in a control day without exercise performance a pretraining (baseline), after an acute exercise session (acute), and after a chronic exercise training for 10 weeks (chronic). After exercise training, systolic BP (SBP, Δ = -150 mmHg.24 h), diastolic BP (DBP, Δ = -96 mmHg.24 h), and mean BP (MBP, Δ = -95 mmHg.24 h) area under the curve were smaller than baseline measurements (P < 0.05) with no difference between acute and baseline measurements. The SBP (ΔSD24 = -2, ΔSDdn = -1.7, and ΔARV24 = -1.9 mmHg), DBP (ΔSD24 = -0.9, ΔSDdn = -0.8, and ΔARV24 = -0.9 mmHg), and MBP (ΔSD24 = -1.5, ΔSDdn = -1.3, and ΔARV24 = -1.2 mmHg) variability reduced in acute session in relation to baseline, with no chronic effects. There are moderate correlations between acute and chronic responses in wake SBP, sleep DBP, and SD24. In conclusion, combined exercise reduces ambulatory BP chronically but not acutely. In contrast, BPV decreases after an acute session but not chronically. Awake SBP, sleep DBP, and SD24indices are promising candidates to predict individual cardiovascular responses to exercise.

Ambulatory blood pressure variability and combined exercise training: comparison between hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women.

AIM: The aim of the study was to verify the effects of moderate combined aerobic and resistance exercises training in ambulatory blood pressure (ABPM) and its variability in hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women. METHODS: Twenty-six participants were divided into two groups: hypertensive (HT = 13) and normotensive (NT = 13). They performed 30 sessions of combined exercises (aerobic and resistance exercises at same session) over 10 weeks. We evaluated: resting BP and 24-h ABPM with systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean blood pressure (MBP), and heart rate (HR). To evaluate blood pressure variability (BPV), the following were considered: 24-h SD (SD24), the mean diurnal and nocturnal deviations (SDdn), average real variability (ARV24). RESULTS: The two-way analysis of variance showed no difference in ABPM nor BPV responses after training between groups. Both HT and NT groups had similar BP reductions in 24-h DBP (P < 0.01; ΔNT = -3.1 ± 1.1, ΔHT = -1.8 ± 1.2 mmHg), 24-h area under the curve of DBP (P = 0.01; ΔNT = -73±105, ΔHT = -44 ± 115 mmHg), and wake DBP (P < 0.01; ΔNT = -3.4 ± 1.2, ΔHT = -1.8 ± 1.3 mmHg), without differences in BPV responses. Moreover, HT women had higher overall SBP SDdn (P = 0.01), SBP ARV (P = 0.02), and MBP ARV (P < 0.01) than NT women. CONCLUSION: Ten-week combined exercise training resulted in similar BP reductions in hypertensive and normotensive postmenopausal women, but not in BPV responses.

Isoflavone does not promote additional effects on heart rate variability of postmenopausal women performing combined exercise training: a clinical, controlled, randomized, double-blind study.

The aim of the study was to investigate the effects of ingesting isoflavones associated with combined aerobic and resistance exercise training on heart rate variability (HRV) indices in postmenopausal women. Twenty-eight healthy postmenopausal women performed 10 weeks of combined exercise training associated with isoflavone (n = 16) or placebo (n = 12) supplementation. The RR intervals (RRi) were collected for 20 min using a heart rate monitor. Analysis of HRV was performed in time (mean squared difference of successive RRi (RMSSD), standard deviation of all normal RRi (SDNN), and percentage of adjacent RRi differing by more than 50 ms (pNN50)), frequency (low-frequency percentage (LF%), high-frequency percentage (HF%), and low-/high-frequency ratio (LF/HF)), and nonlinear domains (standard deviation of the instantaneous variability of the beat-to-beat interval (SD1), long-term variability of the continuous RRi (SD2), and their ratio (SD2/SD1)). Student's t test did not show differences between groups in any general baseline characteristic variables. The results of the generalized estimating equation tests did not demonstrate interaction or group effects for any HRV indices. However, the results reported time effects for mean RR (p < 0.001), RMSSD (p = 0.044), and SD1 (p = 0.044), with increases in these indices in response to exercise training. There were no time effects for LF%, HF%, LF/HF, SDNN, pNN50, SD2, or SD2/SD1. In conclusion, isoflavone supplementation did not promote additional effects on HRV indices of postmenopausal women subjected to 10 weeks of combined exercise training. Novelty Combined training improves heart rate variability in postmenopausal women. Isoflavone supplementation did not promote additional effects on heart rate variability in postmenopausal women.