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 (p0.05). Post hoc analysis indicated that the effect of time was significant between all groups (I: t=3.786, p0.05; Second Evaluation: F2.77=3.239; p