Impact of 3 months of detraining after high intensity exercise on menopause-related symptoms in early postmenopausal women - results of the randomized controlled actlife project

Regular exercise might reduce postmenopausal symptoms, however even short-moderate periods of absence from exercise training might significantly reduce these positive effects. The aim of the study was thus to determine detraining effects on postmenopausal symptoms after a 3-month detraining period in early post-menopausal women. After 13 months, the exercise group (EG: n = 27; 54.6 ± 2.0; 23.6 ± 3.3 kg/m²) had to abruptly stop their supervised, facility-based, high intensity aerobic and resistance group exercise conducted three times per week due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the corresponding lockdown of all training facilities in Germany. In parallel, the control group (CG: n = 27; 55.6 ± 1.6 years, 25.2 ± 5.2 kg/m²) had to terminate their low-intensity exercise program performed once per week. Study endpoint as determined after 3 months of detraining was menopausal symptoms as determined by the Menopausal Rating Scale II (MRS II). The intention to treat principle with multiple imputation was applied. After 13 months of intense multicomponent exercise and significant exercise-induced effects on menopausal symptoms, a further 3 months of detraining resulted in non-significant deteriorations (p = .106) in the exercise group, while non-significant improvements were observed in the control group (p = .180). Corresponding group differences were significant (p = .036) after detraining. Of importance, self-reported individual outdoor activities increased by about 40% in both groups during the three-month lock-down period. Three months of absence from a supervised high-intensity group exercise protocol resulted in detraining effects on postmenopausal symptoms even when outdoor physical activity was increased significantly.

Trial registration number

ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03959995.

"You can't shoot another bullet until you've reloaded the gun": Coaches' perceptions, practices and experiences of deloading in strength and physique sports

Deloading refers to a purposeful reduction in training demand with the intention of enhancing preparedness for successive training cycles. Whilst deloading is a common training practice in strength and physique sports, little is known about how the necessary reduction in training demand should be accomplished. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to determine current deloading practices in competitive strength and physique sports. Eighteen strength and physique coaches from a range of sports (weightlifting, powerlifting, and bodybuilding) participated in semi-structured interviews to discuss their experiences of deloading. The mean duration of coaching experience at ≥ national standard was 10.9 (SD = 3.9) years. Qualitative content analysis identified Three categories: definitions, rationale, and application. Participants conceptualised deloading as a periodic, intentional cycle of reduced training demand designed to facilitate fatigue management, improve recovery, and assist in overall training progression and readiness. There was no single method of deloading; instead, a reduction in training volume (achieved through a reduction in repetitions per set and number of sets per training session) and intensity of effort (increased proximity to failure and/or reduction in relative load) were the most adapted training variables, along with alterations in exercise selection and configuration. Deloading was typically prescribed for a duration of 5 to 7 days and programmed every 4 to 6 weeks, although periodicity was highly variable. Additional findings highlight the underrepresentation of deloading in the published literature, including a lack of a clear operational definition.

Serial vs. Integrated Outdoor Combined Training Programs for Health Promotion in Middle-Aged Males

The purpose of this study was to examine and compare the training and detraining effects of outdoor serial and integrated combined exercise programs on health, functional capacity, and physical fitness indices. Fifty-one untrained overweight/obese males (47 ± 4 years) were divided into a serial combined (SCG), an integrated combined (ICG), or a control (CG) group. The SCG and ICG implemented a 3-month training (3 sessions/week) consisting of walking and body weight exercises. The only difference between SCG and ICG was the sequence of aerobic and strength training. In SCG, the strength training was performed before aerobic training, while in ICG the aerobic and the strength training were alternated repeatedly in a predetermined order. Health, functional capacity, and physical fitness indices were measured before the training, following the termination of programs, and 1-month after training cessation. Following the training, both the SCG and ICG groups showed reduced blood pressure, heart rate, body fat, and waist-to-hip ratio (3−11%; p < 0.001), with improved respiratory function, muscle strength, aerobic capacity, flexibility, and balance (14−61%; p < 0.001). After 1-month of training cessation, significant reductions (p < 0.05) were observed in health indices and physical fitness without returning to baseline levels. However, there were no differences between SCG and ICG after training and training cessation (p > 0.05). In CG, all the above variables did not change. Furthermore, a great percentage of participants in both exercise groups (90%) reported high levels of enjoyment. In conclusion, both serial and integrated outdoor combined walking and body weight strength training programs are enjoyable and equally effective for improving health, functional capacity, and physical fitness indices in overweight/obese middle-aged males.

Detraining Effect on Pulmonary and Cardiovascular Autonomic Function and Functional Outcomes in Patients With Parkinson's Disease After Respiratory Muscle Training: An 18-Month Follow-Up Study

Background: The effect of 3-month respiratory muscle training (RMT) on pulmonary and autonomic function and functional outcomes has been demonstrated in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD); however, there is a paucity of information on the durability of the training effect. In this study, we monitored the pulmonary and cardiovascular autonomic function and clinical severity scales until 18 months after the cessation of RMT to elucidate the detraining effect after RMT.

Methods: All patients with PD receiving RMT were assessed with clinical severity scales as well as pulmonary and autonomic function tests at four different stages (baseline on enrollment, immediately after 3 months of RMT, and 6 and 18 months after cessation of RMT). A control group of PD patients who did not receive RMT was also recruited for comparison. Pulmonary function parameters, including forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), maximum inspiratory pressure (MIP), and maximum expiratory pressure (MEP), were assessed. Cardiovascular autonomic function was assessed using measures including heart rate response to deep breathing (HRDB), Valsalva ratio, and baroreflex sensitivity. Clinical severity scores were also measured using the Hoehn and Yahr staging and the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS).

Results: The results showed significant improvements in MIP, MEP, HRDB, and UPDRS immediately after RMT. Despite some decay, the improvements in pulmonary function (MIP and MEP) and functional outcomes (UPDRS) remained significant until 6 months of detraining (9 months after enrollment). However, the improvement in cardiovascular autonomic function (HRDB) was reversed after 6 months of detraining.

Conclusions: Based on these findings, we recommend that RMT may be repeated after at least 6 months after previous session (9 months after enrollment) for patients with PD to maintain optimal therapeutic effects.

Sustained Swimming Training Is Associated With Reversible Filet Texture Changes of European Sea Bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L.)

This present study aimed to investigate the effect of training and detraining on the growth, chemical composition, white muscle fibers, and filet texture of the European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L.). Fish were divided into control and training groups, which were subjected to water velocities of 0.2 and 1.0 body length per second (bl s-1), respectively, for 32 days (phase I). Half of the fish in the training group were then randomly selected and detrained at a velocity of 0.2 bl s-1 for another 32 days (detraining group), while the velocity of the remaining fish in the training group (1 bl s-1), and control group (0.2 bl s-1) remained unchanged (phase II). The results showed that the growth, body composition, and white muscle fiber densities of the control and trained fish were not significantly different in either phase. Training significantly altered the muscle fiber distribution (P < 0.05), with the training group having fewer 80-90 μm fibers than the control and detraining group at the end of the experiment (P < 0.05). The training group also had significantly higher values for white fiber muscle textural parameters (hardness, adhesiveness, cohesiveness, springiness, gumminess, and chewiness) in phase I (P < 0.05), and these parameters correlated significantly with pH (P < 0.05). However, these differences in texture and the pH correlation weakened when the fish were detrained in phase II. These results indicated that an increase in muscle pH after training may alter the flesh texture characteristics of sea bass. In addition, sustained swimming could induce a reversible change in the filet texture of sea bass.

Effect of 10-week core stabilization exercise training and detraining on pain-related outcomes in patients with clinical lumbar instability

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Clinical lumbar instability causes pain and socioeconomic suffering; however, an appropriate treatment for this condition is unknown. This article examines the effect of a 10 week core stabilization exercise (CSE) program and 3 month follow-up on pain-related outcomes in patients with clinical lumbar instability.

METHODS

Forty-two participants with clinical lumbar instability of at least 3 months in duration were randomly allocated either to 10 weekly treatments with CSE or to a conventional group (CG) receiving trunk stretching exercises and hot pack. Pain-related outcomes including pain intensity during instability catch sign, functional disability, patient satisfaction, and health-related quality of life were measured at 10 weeks of intervention and 1 and 3 months after the last intervention session (follow-up); trunk muscle activation patterns measured by surface electromyography were measured at 10 weeks.

RESULTS

CSE showed significantly greater reductions in all pain-related outcomes after 10 weeks and over the course of 3 month follow-up periods than those seen in the CG (P<0.01). Furthermore, CSE enhanced deep abdominal muscle activation better than in the CG (P<0.001), whereas the CG had deterioration of deep back muscle activation compared with the CSE group (P<0.01). For within-group comparison, CSE provided significant improvements in all pain-related outcomes over follow-up (P<0.01), whereas the CG demonstrated reduction in pain intensity during instability catch sign only at 10 weeks (P<0.01). In addition, CSE showed an improvement in deep abdominal muscle activation (P<0.01), whereas the CG revealed the deterioration of deep abdominal and back muscle activations (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

Ten week CSE provides greater training and retention effects on pain-related outcomes and induced activation of deep abdominal muscles in patients with clinical lumbar instability compared with conventional treatment.