Title | Autonomic Modulation in Older Women: Using Resistance Exercise as a Countermeasure. | ||
Author | Gerhart, Hayden; Tai, Yu Lun; Fennell, Curtis; Mayo, Xian; Kingsley, J Derek | ||
Journal | Int J Exerc Sci | Publication Year/Month | 2017 |
PMID | 28344732 | PMCID | PMC5360374 |
Affiliation + expend | 1.Cardiovascular Dynamics Laboratory, Kent State University, Kent OH, USA; Kinesiology, Health, and Sport Science, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana PA, USA. |
It is unclear if resistance training (RT) can be used to alter declines in autonomic modulation associated with aging. Young women (YW; range 18-25 yrs) and older women (OW; range 50-72 yrs) were compared at baseline. Only OW underwent supervised RT 2 days a week for 12-weeks. Baseline and post-training measurements included heart rate variability (HRV) and complexity (Sample Entropy) to assess autonomic modulation. The 12-weeks of RT consisted of 9 exercises performing 3 sets of 8-12 repetitions. At baseline, group differences in maximal strength, and autonomic modulation were evaluated with a one-way ANOVA with BMI as a covariate. In the OW, the effects of RT were evaluated with repeated-measures ANOVA in order to compare baseline to after RT. The YW had significantly (p</=0.05) lower diastolic, but not systolic blood pressure. The YW also had significantly (p</=0.05) greater absolute Ln (natural logarithm) high-frequency (HF) power and normalized HF power compared to the OW. In addition, there were significantly (p</=0.05) greater levels of normalized low-frequency power (LF) (and the LF/HF ratio) in the OW compared to the YW before RT. However, no difference was found for Sample Entropy. After RT, OW significantly (p</=0.05) increased the chest press (28%) and leg extension (33%). RT had no significant effect on any autonomic parameter suggesting that it may not be a sufficient stimulus to alter the effects of aging.