Background: Sarcopenic obesity is caused by a decrease in muscle mass
and an increase in body fat due to aging, and has been the cause of
cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and
arteriosclerosis and high inflammatory conditions. However, there is a lack of
research on the effects of long-term exercise training as regards to the body
composition and blood-related physiological indicators. Therefore, the purpose of
this study was to investigate the influences the effect of circuit exercise
training for 12 weeks on cardiovascular risk factors, vascular inflammatory
markers, and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) in elderly obesity women with
sarcopenia. Methods: A total of 28 elderly obese Korean women with
sarcopenia (75.0 5.1 years) were randomly assigned either to a control
group (CG, n = 14) or an exercise group (EG, n = 14). The EG performed circuit
exercise training for 25–75 minutes (gradually incremental) three times per week
over a period of 12 weeks, while the CG maintained their usual daily lifestyle
during the intervention period. Pre- and post-intervention evaluations were
performed on selected cardiovascular risk factors, inflammatory markers, and
IGF-1. Results: The EG group exhibited improved body composition (i.e.,
body mass index, fat-free mass, % fat mass, waist-to-hip ratio; all p 0.030, 0.169), Cardiovascular risks factor (i.e.,
heart rate, systolic blood pressure, rate pressure product, high-density
lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol/HDL-C ratio, triglyceride/HDL-C ratio,
low-density lipoprotein cholesterol/HDL-C ratio, brachial-ankle pulse wave
velocity, fasting plasma insulin, homeostasis model assessment-insulin
resistance; all p 0.042, 0.150),
Inflammatory markers (i.e., high sensitivity C-reactive protein, interleukin-6;
all p 0.045, 0.146), and IGF-1
(p = 0.037, = 0.157). Conversely, there were no
significant changes observed in CG. Conclusions: Twelve weeks of circuit
training had a positive effect on the improvement in cardiovascular risk factors,
vascular inflammatory markers, and IGF-1 in elderly obese women with sarcopenia.