Physical Activity and Basal Metabolic Rate in Postmenopausal Women

NCT01550536 | Completed

• 2 other identifiers: UCSD GCRC 1910/67665M01RR000827-35
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 49
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 3

Brief Summary

The primary purpose of this study is to expand research on the effects of physical activity on basal metabolic rate (BMR) in healthy postmenopausal women, and to further compare the effects of long-term habitual exercise to the results of a shorter-term (16 weeks) training program. The investigators will measure BMR by indirect calorimetry and normalize it across subjects for body size (fat free mass) and level of aerobic fitness (VO2MAX). Two groups will be compared: an intervention group (no previous participation in regular exercise, newly enrolled in this study's 16 week training program), and a long-term athlete group (have engaged in at least 5 hours of exercise per week for the past 10 years or longer). A secondary aim is to generate an equation for the prediction of BMR from fat free mass in physically active postmenopausal women, to be applied to hypotheses in biological anthropology. The investigators expect to find at baseline that, controlling for fat free mass and VO2MAX, the long-term group will have significantly higher BMR than the intervention group. At 16 weeks the investigators expect no change in BMR for the long-term group, while BMR will have increased in the intervention group. At the same time, the investigators expect to find that after completing the training regimen, the intervention group will have BMR similar to that of the long-term athletes.

Conditions

Postmenopausal Metabolic Health

Keywords

basal metabolic rate; resting energy expenditure; menopause; physical activity; metabolic syndrome

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in basal metabolic rate

  Basal metabolic rate is the energy expended at rest and under fasting conditions.

  baseline, 5, 10 and 16 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Change in fat-free mass

  baseline, 5, 10 and 16 weeks

• Change in maximal aerobic capacity

  baseline, 16 weeks

Study Arms (2)

Training

EXPERIMENTAL

Sedentary women who exercised \<2 hours per week and who had never engaged in a regular exercise program were enrolled in an exercise training intervention, following baseline measurements. See intervention below.

Behavioral: Resistance and aerobic exercise

Active

NO INTERVENTION

Postmenopausal women who exercised \>5 hours per week and had been doing so for at least the past 10 years. These women were asked to maintain their normal activity habits for the duration of the study.

Interventions

Resistance and aerobic exercise BEHAVIORAL

Following baseline measurements, sedentary women were enrolled in a 16-week exercise training program at the YMCA in La Jolla, CA. Exercise occurred 3 times per week, for 1.5 hours each time. Exercise consisted of stretching, 20 minutes of aerobic exercise on elliptical machines, and 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions to failure for each of ten weight lifting exercises: abdominal crunch, arm curl, arm extension, chest press, lat pull-down, leg curl, leg extension, leg press, seated row, and trunk extension. Women started at 65-75% of 1-repetition-maximum, and resistance was increased as necessary to maintain the number of sets and reps and to continue to work to failure. Exercise was monitored by a TechnoGym electronic key system, and trainers instructed and supervised subjects in the gym.

Training

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 40 Years - 120 Years
• Sex: female
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• naturally postmenopausal (i.e. non-surgically)/\> 1 year since last menstruation
• FSH \> 30 mIU/ml
• estradiol-17β \< 25 pg/ml

You may not qualify if:

• smoker, abuser of alcohol/other drugs
• hypo- or hyperthyroid (serum TSH \< 0.3 or \> 5.5 microU/ml, respectively)
• underweight or severely obese (BMI \< 18.5 or \> 35 kg/m2, respectively)
• weight instability within the past six months (±\> 5% of body weight)
• hormone replacement therapy within the past six months
• history of metabolic, respiratory or cardiovascular disease
• high blood pressure
• contraindication for maximal aerobic testing as determined by PAR-Q questionnaire and physician's examination

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of California, San Diego: lead
• Wenner Gren: collaborator
• Sigma Xi: collaborator
• National Center for Research Resources (NCRR): collaborator

Study Sites (3)

La Jolla YMCA

La Jolla, California, 92037, United States

Location

UCSD Human Exercise Physiology Laboratory

La Jolla, California, 92093-0623, United States

Location

UCSD General Clinical Research Center

San Diego, California, 92093-0990, United States

Location

Related Publications (2)

• Froehle AW, Ngo HT, Hopkins SR, Natarajan L, Schoeninger MJ. 2010. Relationship between physical activity, body composition and basal metabolic rate in postmenopausal women. Am J Hum Biol 22:252-253. [meeting abstract]

  RESULT

• Froehle AW, Ngo HT, Natarajan L, Schoeninger MJ, Hopkins SR. 2011. Short-term exercise does not elevate basal metabolic rate (BMR) in postmenopausal women in the absence of increased fat free mass (FFM). Am J Hum Biol 23:259. [meeting abstract]

  RESULT

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Motor Activity; Metabolic Syndrome

Interventions

Exercise

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior; Insulin Resistance; Hyperinsulinism; Glucose Metabolism Disorders; Metabolic Diseases; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Motor Activity; Movement; Musculoskeletal Physiological Phenomena; Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena

Study Officials

• Andrew W Froehle, PhD

  University of California, San Diego

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NON RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Doctoral Candidate

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 5, 2012
• First Posted: March 12, 2012
• Study Start: January 1, 2008
• Primary Completion: August 1, 2010
• Study Completion: August 1, 2010
• Last Updated: November 29, 2023

Record last verified: 2023-11

Locations

US (3)