Abstract

ROJANO, D.  and  VARGAS, G.M.. Effects of a short-term physical exercise program and a hypocaloric diet in lipid profile and body composition of overweight post-menopausal women. Rev Andal Med Deporte [online]. 2014, vol.7, n.3, pp.95-100. ISSN 2172-5063.

Objective: The purpose of this paper is to assess the changes in the body composition and the cholesterol and triglycerides caused by a 6 weeks aerobic and resistance training program and a hypocaloric diet in a group of overweight post-menopausal women. Method: The sample population was made up of 18 post-menopausal women, 9 of them were randomly assigned to the experimental group and the other 9 to the control group. All the women presented more than 12 months of amenorrhea and had an age between 46 and 62 years old. None of them were involved in any physical activity. Results: Significant differences between experimental and control group were found in the variations of the body weight, the body fat mass and the muscle mass. No significant differences were found in the lipid profile. However, the effect size produced in the experimental group related to the control group was moderate for the decrease of the total cholesterol and the low density lipoproteins (LDL). Conclusion: These data suggest that a short-term (6 weeks) aerobic and resistance training program and a hypocaloric diet in overweight postmenopausal women produces substantial improvements in the body composition and a trend to improve the lipid profile. These changes can have a positive impact in the quality of life.

Keywords : Physical exercise; Hypocaloric diet; Body composition; Menopause; Lipid profile.

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