Nutrition & Health

Menopause dramatically increases the risk of obesity and related chronic diseases. Preventive lifestyle interventions of exercise and diet can have cardiometabolic protective effects in this high risk population. High intensity interval exercise (HIIE) has been recently shown to be an advantageous exercise mode as it requires less time and it can lead to faster health improvements compared to continuous exercise (CE). However, no studies have investigated whether HIIE can lead to enhanced fat oxidation rates and exercise enjoyment in older women. The purpose of the present study is to compare the acute effects of CE versus HIIE on fat oxidation and exercise enjoyment in overweight perimenopausal women. Seven perimenopausal women (age: 45.1±1.8 yrs, fat mass: 37.8±2.2%) completed a baseline VO2 peak test and two experimental trials: HIIE and CE. HIIE consisted of eight alternating intervals of 4-minutes walking at 90% heart rate peak (HRP) and 3-minutes at 70% HRP for a total exercise time of 28 minutes. To ensure similar energy expenditure, CE consisted of walking at 70% HRP for 47 minutes. Similar rates of fat oxidation during exercise were found between the two trials. Both trials led to similar scores in exercise enjoyment ((HIIE: 4.9 vs. CE: 3.7, p=0.11), while the HIIE led to slightly greater levels of perceived exertion (HIIE: 14.1 Vs. CE: 13.1, p=0.01). In conclusion, an acute session of HIIE can lead to similar benefits in fat oxidation and exercise enjoyment as the traditionally prescribed CE, while requesting participants to exercise for considerably less time.