Effects of Aging and Exercise on the Cardiorespiratory Fitness of Older Women

Abstract Purpose: The present study analyzed the effects of chronological aging and the practice of regular exercise (PRE) on the cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) of older women. Methods: A descriptive study of 78 participants was performed, with longitudinal design and an initial evaluation in 2005 and a second in 2011. The PRE defined groups as Inactive (I), Insufficiently-Active (IA), and Sufficiently-Active (SA). The six-minute walking test measured CRF. MANOVA with repeated-measures was used to verify the effect of time and the PRE groups on CRF (p<0.05). Results: The participants were classified as having a low socioeconomic level and being overweight. MANOVA demonstrated the effect of time (F1.74=30.134; p<0.05) and groups (F2.74=3.729; p<0.05), without interaction (F2.74=0.811; p>0.05). Post hoc analysis indicated that the effect of time was significant between all groups (I: t=3.786, p<0.05; IA: t=2.597, p<0.05; SA: t=3.191, p<0.05); and the group effect was significant only between the I and SA groups in the second evaluation (First evaluation: F2.76=1.712; p>0.05; Second Evaluation: F2.77=3.239; p<0.05, post hoc Tukey: group I vs AS =p<0.05). A smaller reduction in CRF was found in the SA group (8.0%), followed by the IA (10.3%) and I (14.3%) groups. Conclusion: The results of the present study indicated that elderly women who practice exercise regularly had a smaller reduction in CRF than those who were inactive. This suggests that the PRE at recommended levels for health purposes can attenuate the effect of aging on the CRF.

摘要
研究目的：本研究旨在分析时序衰老与规律运动（Regular Exercise, PRE）对老年女性心肺适能（Cardiorespiratory Fitness, CRF）的影响。
研究方法：本研究为描述性研究，共纳入78名受试者，采用纵向研究设计，分别于2005年开展首次评估、2011年开展第二次评估。依据规律运动情况将受试者分为不运动组（Inactive, I）、运动不足组（Insufficiently-Active, IA）与规律运动组（Sufficiently-Active, SA）。采用六分钟步行试验测定受试者的心肺适能。采用重复测量多元方差分析（Multivariate Analysis of Variance, MANOVA）检验时间因素与运动组别对心肺适能的影响（p<0.05）。
研究结果：受试人群均具有较低的社会经济水平且处于超重状态。重复测量多元方差分析结果显示，时间因素（F₁.₇₄=30.134; p<0.05）与运动组别（F₂.₇₄=3.729; p<0.05）均存在显著主效应，且二者无交互作用（F₂.₇₄=0.811; p>0.05）。事后检验结果表明，所有组别内时间因素的效应均具有统计学意义（不运动组：t=3.786, p<0.05；运动不足组：t=2.597, p<0.05；规律运动组：t=3.191, p<0.05）；而组别效应仅在第二次评估时于不运动组与规律运动组间存在显著差异（首次评估：F₂.₇₆=1.712; p>0.05；第二次评估：F₂.₇₇=3.239; p<0.05，Tukey事后检验：不运动组vs规律运动组p<0.05）。三组的心肺适能降幅分别为：规律运动组8.0%、运动不足组10.3%、不运动组14.3%。
研究结论：本研究结果表明，规律运动的老年女性其心肺适能降幅显著低于不运动人群。这提示，符合健康推荐标准的规律运动可减缓衰老对老年女性心肺适能的负面影响。