Circuit Resistance Training in Women: Body Composition, Cardiac Morphology and Serum Cytokines Levels

Exercise can elicit benefits to the heart, body composition, and benefits or damage on the immunologic system. PURPOSE: To analyze the effects of circuit resistance training (CRT) on body mass (BM), body free fat mass (FFM), body fat mass (FM), left ventricular mass (LVM), rest final diastolic volume (FDV), rest final systolic volume (FSV), rest systolic volume (SV), relationships LVM/body surface (BS), LVM/BM, LVM/FFM, and cytokine responses in sedentary women. METHODS: Fourteen women (39.71 ± 3.8 years old) participated in this research. The nutritional standard was accompanied by 24-h dietary recall. The protocol consisted of 3 sessions/week of a circuit training of 9 stations with alternating muscle groups. In each session, the subjects performed the circuit 2 times with one set of 8-12 maximal repetitions (RM) in each station, during 10 weeks. The body composition was analyzed by DXA, the heart parameters by EchocardioDoppler and, the serum cytokines levels by flow cytometry (IL-1B; IL-6; IL-8; IL-10, IL-12p70 and TNF) in pre and post experimental period. For analysis of serum cytokines levels, blood samples were collected from the antecubital vein in 8 moments: before the training; 5 min, 24h and 48h post-second-session of training; and 5min, 24, 48 and 96h post-last-session of training. Student's t were applied for variables of body composition and cardiac morphology, and Friedman´s with Tukey post hoc tests for cytokines (α=0.05). RESULTS: Values showed (pre | post). There was maintenance of standard nutrition; increase in the FFM (35.94 ± 4.93 | 39.13 ± 4.95 kg) and LVM (139.57 ± 11.91 | 145.93 ± 17.68 g) with maintenance of LVM/FFM (3.95 ± 0.64 | 3.77 ± 0.61 g/kg), thus, the left ventricular hipertrophy accompanied the increase of the body free fat mass. There was increase in LVM/BS (84.91 ± 7.56 | 88.56 ± 10.36 g/m2) and LVM/BM (2.44 ± 0.33 | 2.58 ± 0.38 g/kg) with maintenance of variables FDV, FSV and SV, indicating an improvement in left ventricular morphology. There was also reduction of FM (21.91 ± 8.15 | 17.82 ± 4.24 kg) and maintenance of BM (57.85 ± 7.80 | 56.96 ± 6.28 kg), to improved body composition, and no alterations of serum cytokines levels. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed CRT improved the corporal composition and the morphology of heart, and induced no pro-inflammatory effects observed by serum cytokines levels in women.