Eight weeks of supervised indoor climbing significantly reduces arterial pressure and total cholesterol in recreational climbers

Black, Jane, Chenery, Natasha and Devereux, Gavin (2020) Eight weeks of supervised indoor climbing significantly reduces arterial pressure and total cholesterol in recreational climbers. Journal of Physical Activity Research, 5 (2). pp. 79-84. ISSN 2574-4437

[img] Text
Black et al., 2020 - Eight Weeks of Supervised Indoor Climbing Significantly Reduces Arterial Pressure and Total Cholesterol in Recreational Climbers.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to Repository staff only

Download (216kB)

Abstract

The present study sought to investigate physiological adaptations associated with an 8-week supervised climbing intervention in recreational climbers. Nine participants (5 males and 4 females; age: 37 ± 8 years; stature: 169.7 ± 10.6 cm; body mass 83.3 ± 20.3 kg) volunteered to complete the intervention concomitant with their recreational climbing activities. Blood pressure, body composition, peak aerobic capacity, total cholesterol, and handgrip strength were assessed before and after the intervention. Post-intervention, diastolic blood pressure was significantly reduced (pre: 87 ± 6 mmHg, post: 72 ± 10 mmHg, p<0.01), without significant changes in systolic blood pressure (pre: 136 ± 15 mmHg, post: 128 ± 20 mmHg, p=0.19). This resulted in a significant reduction in mean arterial pressure (pre: 103 ± 9 mmHg, post: 90 ± 13 mmHg, p<0.01). A significant reduction in total cholesterol was also observed following the 8-week climbing intervention (pre: 5.09 ± 0.49 mmol/L, post: 4.39 ± 0.63 mmol/L, p<0.01). However, there were no significant changes in body fat percentage (p=0.67), skeletal muscle mass (p=0.76), isometric hand-grip strength (dominant hand: p=0.93, non-dominant hand: p=0.12) or peak aerobic capacity (p=0.37). Supervised indoor climbing exercise may therefore serve as an important non-pharmacological intervention to improve cardiovascular health by reducing mean arterial pressure and total cholesterol levels in recreational climbers, independent of changes in body composition or peak aerobic capacity.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: physiological adaptations, climbing, recreational climbers, blood pressure, cholesterol
Subjects: Q Science > QP Physiology
Divisions: Faculty of Health & Science > Department of Science & Technology
Depositing User: Jane Black
Date Deposited: 24 Sep 2020 10:21
Last Modified: 11 Nov 2020 12:32
URI: https://oars.uos.ac.uk/id/eprint/1407

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year