Effects of Weight-Bearing Exercise on Health-Related Physical Fitness and Sleep Indicators in Pre- and Postmenopausal Women

PURPOSE: This study aimed to determine the effects of weight-bearing exercise on health-related physical fitness and sleep index in pre- and postmenopausal women.METHODS: Twenty middle-aged women were randomly assigned to premenopausal women (PRW; n=11) and postmenopausal women (POW; n=9) groups. All subjects engaged in weight-bearing exercises for 50 minute twice a week for 8 weeks. All participants underwent weight, body mass index (BMI), muscle mass (MM), body fat mass, body fat percentage, waist to hip ratio, bench press (BP), leg press (LP), 3-minute step test (3 MST), sit and reach test (SRT), air squat (AS), push up (PU), curl up (CU), grip strength (GS), and the Korean version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (K-PSQI) measurements before and 4 and 8 weeks after the weight-bearing exercise program.RESULTS: AS and PU improved significantly in the PRW versus POW group (p<.05). BP, LP, 3MST, SRT, AS, PU, CU, GS, and K-PSQI improved significantly in the PRW and POW groups (p<.05).CONCLUSIONS: Weight-bearing exercise improved health-related fitness and sleep indicators in pre- and postmenopausal women. In particular, weight-bearing exercises more effectively improved the muscle endurance of pre- versus postmenopausal women. This significant finding suggests that the fitness level and sleep quality of premenopausal women may benefit from regular weight-bearing exercise.