Effectivness of a 12-week Fitness Intervention for People with Metabolic Syndrome

To see the effectiveness of a 12-week fitness intervention for individuals with metabolic syndrome. The sample included 11 adults (6 females, 5 males) all of which were classified with metabolic syndrome. The intervention consisted of moderate intensity aerobic exercise 3 times a week (30 mins each session) for 12 weeks. Every 2 weeks the subjects HR Reserve would be increased by 5% until reaching 65% at the end of the 12 weeks. Cholesterol, HDL, LDL, glucose, triglycerides, weight, girth, risk factors of metabolic syndrome, blood pressure, resting heart rate, flexibility, and muscular endurance were measured before and after the 12 weeks. Results: Out of the 13 pre/post-intervention assessments, only 6 showed a significant difference (p < 0.05): pre/post weight (p =.003), pre/post girth (p =.000), pre/post risk factors for metabolic syndrome (p =.004), pre/post sit and reach test (p =.025), pre/post bench press test (p =.004) and pre/post resting heart rate (p =.015). There was not however a significant difference in (pre/post cholesterol (p =.386), pre/post HDL (p =.326), pre/post LDL (p =.102), pre/post triglycerides (p =.229), pre/post glucose (p =.332), pre/post systolic blood pressure (p =.636), and pre/post diastolic blood pressure (p =.873). The overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome in this study decreased from 100% pre-intervention to 63% post-intervention. After the 12-week fitness intervention 63% of the subjects reduced their risk factors associate with metabolic syndrome and 36% of those subjects were below the criteria for having metabolic syndrome (< 3 risk factors). In summary, this study showed evidence that exercise does in fact help reduce some of the risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome.Education (all programs