ORIGINAL ARTICLE  SPORT CARDIOLOGY 

The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 2023 March;63(3):492-502

DOI: 10.23736/S0022-4707.22.14263-5

Copyright © 2022 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Effects of interval-walking training on blood pressure in community-dwelling Japanese older adults

Kouji TSUDA ¹, Emi HAYASHI ¹, Kuniyasu KAMIYA ¹, Asako KUDO ¹, Hironobu KAKIHANA ², Shin NAKAYAMA ¹, Yuri ITO ³, Masahisa SAITO ⁴, Yuji NUKUI ¹, Masaaki HOSHIGA ⁵, Junko TAMAKI ¹ ✉

¹ Department of Hygiene and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Takatsuki, Japan; ² Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Rehabilitation, Kobe Gakuin University, Kobe, Japan; ³ Research and Development Center, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Takatsuki, Japan; ⁴ School of Health Science and Medical Care, Meiji University of Integrative Medicine, Nantan, Japan; ⁵ Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Takatsuki, Japan

BACKGROUND: The hypotensive effects of high-intensity interval training have been reported; however, studies on older adults are few. This study aimed to examine whether interval-walking training (IWT), a home-based program of high-intensity interval training, reduces blood pressure (BP) levels when compared with a non-intervention group in community-dwelling older adults.
METHODS: An intervention study was conducted with 55 men (age, 75±5 years; IWT/control groups, N.=27/28) and 100 women (75±5 years; N.=47/53). The IWT regimen was as follows: fast (high-intensity) walking at 70-85% of the peak aerobic capacity and normal (light-intensity) walking at approximately 40% of the peak aerobic capacity for 3 min each, ≥5 times/walking day, and ≥4 days/week for 5 months. Systolic, diastolic, and mean arterial BPs (SBP, DBP, and MAP, respectively) were measured in the supine posture.
RESULTS: The mean baseline SBP/DBP was 132/78 mmHg in men and 131/72 mmHg in women. Five-month changes in SBP, DBP, or MAP did not significantly differ between the IWT and control groups in either sex. The weekly fast-walking time in the IWT group was negatively correlated with changes in DBP (Spearman’s ρ=-0.383, P=0.049) and MAP (ρ=-0.444, P=0.021) only in men.
CONCLUSIONS: Though present findings did not indicate significant hypotensive effects of IWT in community-dwelling older adults, men with longer fast-walking times experienced greater BP decreases. Further studies with sufficient sample sizes are needed to determine the factors modulating the effects of the proposed training program.

KEY WORDS: High-intensity interval training; Blood pressure; Aged; Walking