Effects of 12 weeks of aerobic exercise combined with resistance training on neurocognitive performance in obese women.

Background/Objectives: To the best of our knowledge, there have been no previous studies conducted on the long-term effects of an exercise intervention on deficits in inhibitory control in obese individuals. The aim of this study was thus to examine the effect of 12 weeks of a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise on behavioral and cognitive electrophysiological performance involving cognitive interference inhibition in obese individuals. Methods: Thirty-two qualified healthy obese women were randomly divided into either an exercise group (EG, age: 34.76 ± 5.52 years old; BMI: 29.35 ± 3.52 kg/m2) or a control group (CG, age: 33.84 ± 7.05 years old; BMI: 29.61 ± 4.31 kg/m2). All participants performed the Stroop task, with electrophysiological signals being collected simultaneously before and after a 12-week intervention. The estimated V̇O2max, muscular strength, and body fat percentage (measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) were also assessed within one week before and after the intervention. Participants in the EG group engaged in 30 min of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise combined with resistance exercise, 5 sessions per week for 12 weeks, while the participants in the CG group maintained their regular lifestyle without engaging in any type of exercise. Results: The results revealed that although a 12-week exercise intervention did not enhance the behavioral indices [e.g., accuracy rates (ARs) and reaction times (RTs)] in the EG group, significantly shorter N2 and P3 latencies and greater P2 and P3 amplitudes were observed. Furthermore, the fat percentage distribution (e.g. total body fat %, trunk fat %, and leg fat %) and level of physical fitness (e.g. estimated V̇O2max and muscular strength) in the EG group were significantly improved. The changes prior to and after the intervention in the P3 amplitude and trunk fat percentage were significantly negatively correlated in the EG group (r = -0.521, p = 0.039). Conclusions: These findings suggested that 12 weeks of aerobic exercise combined with resistance exercise in obese women affects cognitive function broadly, but not specifically in terms of inhibitory control. The percentage of decreased trunk fat may play a potential facilitating role in inhibition processing in obesity.

Combined aerobic and resistance training improves physical and executive functions in women with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVES: Exercise is considered as an adjuvant therapeutic modality to alleviate symptoms of several rheumatic diseases. However, data regarding the benefits of exercise to patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) are relatively scant. METHODS: This study aimed to assess the effects of regular, moderate-intensity, aerobic exercise combined with resistance training on women with SLE who had no regular exercise. Patients were recruited and allocated into either the exercise or control group by their willingness. Patients in the exercise group (n = 12) underwent 12 weeks of combined exercise (five days per week), whereas those in the control group (n = 11) maintained their usual lifestyle. RESULTS: At baseline, there were no between-group differences in body composition, disease activity, two-kilometer walking test, and executive function test. After the combined exercise intervention for 12 weeks, significant improvements of both fitness index and reaction time to the stimuli in the go/no-go test were observed in the exercise group, but not in the control group. The disease activities in both study groups did not change significantly at the end of the study period. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that regular moderate-intensity aerobic exercise combined with resistance training improves the physical and executive functions of SLE patients without exacerbating disease activity.

Effects of Acute Aerobic Exercise Combined with Resistance Exercise on Neurocognitive Performance in Obese Women.

To the best of the author's knowledge, there have been no previous studies conducted on the effects of a combination of acute aerobic and resistance exercise on deficit of inhibitory control in obese individuals. The aim of this study was, thus, to examine the effect of a single bout of such an exercise mode on behavioral and cognitive electrophysiological performance involving cognitive interference inhibition in obese women. After the estimated VO2max and percentage fat (measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (Hologic, Bedford, MA, USA) were assessed, 32 sedentary obese female adults were randomly assigned to an exercise group (EG) and a control group (CG), with their behavioral performance being recorded with concomitant electrophysiological signals when performing a Stroop task. Then, the EG engaged in 30 min of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise combined with resistance exercise, and the CG rested for a similar duration of time without engaging in any type of exercise. After the interventions, the neurocognitive performance was measured again in the two groups. The results revealed that although acute exercise did not enhance the behavioral indices (e.g., accuracy rates (ARs) and reaction times (RTs)), cognitive electrophysiological signals were improved (e.g., shorter N2 and P3 latencies, smaller N2 amplitudes, and greater P3 amplitudes) in the Stroop task after the exercise intervention in the EG. The findings indicated that a combination of acute moderate-intensity aerobic and resistance exercise may improve the neurophysiological inhibitory control performance of obese women.

Neurocognitive Inhibitory Control Ability Performance and Correlations with Biochemical Markers in Obese Women.

Inhibitory control, the ability to suppress prepotent responses and resist irrelevant stimuli, is thought to play a critical role in the maintenance of obesity. However, electrophysiological performance related to different inhibitory control processes and their relationship with motor response inhibition and cognitive interference and potential biochemical mechanisms in middle-aged, obese women are as yet unclear. This work thus compared different neurocognitive Go/Nogo and Stroop task performance in healthy sedentary normal-weight and obese women, as well as their correlation with biochemical markers. Twenty-six healthy, sedentary obese women (obese group) and 26 age-matched (21-45 years old) normal-weight women (control group) were the participants, categorized by body mass index and percentage fat, as measured with dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. They provided a fasting blood sample and performed two cognitive tasks (i.e., Go/Nogo and Stroop tasks) with concomitant electrophysiological recording. The N2 and P3 waveforms of event-related potential (ERP) were recorded. Although the between-group behavioral performance was comparable, the obese group relative to the control group showed significantly longer N2 latency and smaller P3 amplitude in the Stroop task and smaller N2 and P3 amplitudes in the Go/Nogo task. Significant inflammation response indices (e.g., CRP, leptin, adiponectin/leptin ratio) were observed in the obese group. The Nogo P3 amplitude was significantly correlated with the adiponectin/leptin ratio. These findings indicate that healthy obese women still exhibit deviant neurophysiological performance when performing Go/Nogo and Stroop tasks, where the adiponectin/leptin ratio could be one of the influencing factors for the deficit in neural processes of motor response inhibition.

Effects of a group-based step aerobics training on sleep quality and melatonin levels in sleep-impaired postmenopausal women.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of regular moderate- to high-intensity step aerobics training on the melatonin levels and sleep quality of sleep-impaired postmenopausal women (PMW). PMW with poor sleep (having a score over 5 in the Chinese version of the Pittsburgh sleep quality index [PSQI]) were divided into a training group (TG, n = 10) and an age-, height-, weight-, and PSQI score-matched control group (CG, n = 9). The participants in the TG performed 40-45 minutes of step aerobics exercise 3 times per week for 10 weeks at an intensity of 75-85% of the heart rate reserve, whereas the participants in the CG maintained their regular lifestyle. The fasting blood was analyzed, and the PSQI questionnaire and aerobic fitness test were administered before and after the 10-week program. The results revealed that for the participants in the TG, the PSQI score significantly decreased (TG from 9.40 ± 0.81 to 7.40 ± 0.43; CG from 7.56 ± 0.34 to 7.78 ± 0.68; between-group difference = 2.22, p ≤ 0.05) and the melatonin levels significantly increased (TG from 12.08 ± 4.20 to 44.42 ± 7.03 pg·ml; CG from 11.81 ± 2.03 to 5.5 ± 1.39 pg·ml, between-group difference = 38.65, p ≤ 0.05). In conclusion, a 10-week moderate- to high-intensity step aerobics training program can improve sleep quality and increase the melatonin levels in sleep-impaired PMW. Therefore, regular moderate- to high-intensity step aerobics training is recommended for sleep-impaired PMW.