Concurrent Training Promoted Sustained Anti-atherogenic Benefits in the Fasting Plasma Triacylglycerolemia of Postmenopausal Women at 1-Year Follow-up.

Rossi, FE, Diniz, TA, Fortaleza, ACS, Neves, LM, Picolo, MR, Monteiro, PA, Buonani, C, Lira, FS, and Freitas, IF Jr. Concurrent training promoted sustained anti-atherogenic benefits in the fasting plasma triacylglycerolemia of postmenopausal women at 1-year follow-up. J Strength Cond Res 32(12): 3573-3582, 2018-The aim of this study was to compare the effects of aerobic and concurrent training (aerobic plus strength training) on the lipid profiles of normotriacylglycerolemic and hypertriacylglycerolemic postmenopausal women and to verify whether the benefits of aerobic and concurrent training were sustained after 1 year. Total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triacylglycerol (TAG), and glucose were assessed in 46 normotriacylglycerolemic (TAG < 150 mg·dl) postmenopausal women divided into 3 groups: aerobic training, concurrent training (CT), and a control group. For CT group, hypertriacylglycerolemic postmenopausal women were recruited (TAG ≥ 150 mg·dl, n = 14). Total daily caloric consumption and free-living physical activity were evaluated by dietary questionnaires and accelerometer, respectively, and fat mass by DXA. In 16 weeks, CT was effective in increasing HDL-c (normotriacylglycerolemic: pre = 57.1 ± 17.3 mg·dl × post = 64.3 ± 16.1 mg·dl p = 0.020 and hypertriacylglycerolemic: pre = 44.7 ± 9.6 mg·dl × post = 50.3 ± 15.3 mg·dl; p = 0.012) and reducing the atherogenic index in normotriacylglycerolemic (pre = 3.6 ± 0.9 mg·dl × post = 3.0 ± 0.6 mg·dl; p = 0.003) and hypertriacylglycerolemic (pre = 5.2 ± 1.1 mg·dl × post = 4.7 ± 1.2 mg·dl; p = 0.018) postmenopausal women. In addition, the effects were sustained at the 1-year follow-up only among the hypertriacylglycerolemic postmenopausal women. The anti-atherogenic status in normotriacylglycerolemic and hypertriacylglycerolemic postmenopausal women was changed by CT but without significant differences between groups. Furthermore, these benefits are sustained at the 1-year follow-up among the hypertriacylglycerolemic subjects.

Combined Training (Aerobic Plus Strength) Potentiates a Reduction in Body Fat but Demonstrates No Difference on the Lipid Profile in Postmenopausal Women When Compared With Aerobic Training With a Similar Training Load.

The aim of this study was to verify the effects of aerobic and combined training on the body composition and lipid profile of obese postmenopausal women and to analyze which of these models is more effective after equalizing the training load. Sixty-five postmenopausal women (age = 61.0 ± 6.3 years) were divided into 3 groups: aerobic training (AT, n = 15), combined training (CT [strength + aerobic], n = 32), and control group (CG, n = 18). Their body composition upper body fat (TF), fat mass (FM), percentage of FM, and fat-free mass (FFM) were estimated by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. The lipid profile, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were assessed. There was a statistically significant difference in the TF (AT = -4.4%, CT = -4.4%, and CG = 1.0%, p = 0.001) and FFM (AT = 1.7%, CT = 2.6%, and CG = -1.4%, p = 0.0001) between the experimental and the control groups. Regarding the percentage of body fat, there was a statistically significant difference only between the CT and CG groups (AT = -2.8%, CT = -3.9%, and CG = 0.31%; p = 0.004). When training loads were equalized, the aerobic and combined training decreased core fat and increased FFM, but only the combined training potentiated a reduction in percentage of body fat in obese postmenopausal women after the training program. High-density lipoprotein-c levels increased in the combined group, and the chol/HDL ratio (atherogenic index) decreased in the aerobic group; however, there were no significant differences between the intervention programs. Taken together, both the exercise training programs were effective for improving body composition and inducing an antiatherogenic status.