The effect of 12 weeks of resistive exercises versus aerobic exercises in overweight hypertensive postmenopausal women

Hypertension is the most important risk factor that affects women in the early years of postmenopausal period. Approximately 30–50%of the women develop hypertension before starting the age of 60 years, and beginning of hypertension can cause a variety of manifestations that are frequently associated with menopause. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the effect of 12 weeks of resistive exercises versus aerobic exercises for the treatment of postmenopausal hypertension. A total of 60 postmenopausal women with hypertension were included. Their ages ranged from 50 to 60 years old; their BMI ranged from 30 to 34.9 kg/m 2 ; and their blood pressure ranged between 140/90 and 170/105 mmHg. They were randomly assigned to group A, which received resistive exercises; group B, which received aerobic exercises; or group C (control group), which received antihypertensive medication (bisoprolol fumarate 5 mg). The three groups followed the treatment program for 12 weeks. Assessment of the systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) for all participants in the three groups (A, B, and C) was carried out before, after 6 weeks, and after the end of the treatment program through the use of mercury column sphygmomanometer. All groups (A, B, and C) recorded a significant decrease in both SBP and DBP values ( P =0.001, 0.001, and 0.003, respectively, and P =0.001, 0.001, and 0.009, respectively) after the end of the 12 weeks of the treatment program when compared with their corresponding values measured before treatment. However, the participants in group A exhibited a greater reduction in DBP more than groups B and C. These results suggest that the resistance exercises may be more effective than aerobic exercises in reducing SBP and DBP in postmenopausal women.