The effects of exercise and diet program in overweight people - Nordic walking versus walking.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to compare the effects of Nordic walking (NW) versus regular walking (W) combined with diet on body composition, aerobic capacity, and strength in overweight adults over a 6-month period.
Results Summary
Both NW and W groups showed significant reductions in BMI and waist circumference after 6 months, but only the NW group demonstrated additional benefits in body composition and aerobic capacity. The study concluded that NW may offer greater and faster health improvements compared to W for overweight middle-aged adults.
Population
Overweight adults (mean age 66 years, BMI 32-33)
Effective Dosage
Supervised training 3 times/week
Duration
6 months
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | decrease | BMI | overweight adults | 6% | decreased significantly | #1 |
diet combined with a long-supervised walking training | decrease | BMI | overweight adults | 4% | decreased significantly | #2 |
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | decrease | waist circumference | overweight adults | 8% | decreased significantly | #3 |
diet combined with a long-supervised walking training | decrease | waist circumference | overweight adults | 4% | decreased significantly | #4 |
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | decrease | fat mass | overweight adults | - | reduced | #5 |
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | increase | lean mass | overweight adults | - | increased | #6 |
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | increase | VO2max | overweight adults | - | increased | #7 |
diet combined with a long-supervised Nordic walking training | increase | strength | overweight adults | - | increased | #8 |
PURPOSE: Nordic walking (NW) has been recommended as a form of exercise for clinical populations. Despite intervention programs designed to face a clinical status may last several months, no longitudinal studies have compared the effect of NW to another usual form of exercise, like walking (W). We evaluated the effects of diet combined with a long-supervised NW versus W training on body composition, aerobic capacity and strength in overweight adults. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Thirty-eight participants, randomized into a NW (n=19, 66±7 years, body mass index (BMI) 33±5)) and a W (n=19, 66±8 years, BMI 32±5) group, followed a diet and a supervised training routine 3 times/week for 6 months. The variables assessed at baseline, after 3 and 6 months were: anthropometric indexes (ie, BMI and waist circumference (WC)), body composition, aerobic capacity (oxygen consumption (VO RESULTS: After 6 months both NW and W group decreased significantly BMI (6% and 4%, respectively) and WC (8% and 4%, respectively), but only the NW group reduced ( CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that NW can give in some relevant health parameters, greater and faster benefits than W. Thus, NW can be a primary tool to counteract the obesity and overweight state in middle-aged adults.