Does two years of strength training help older women stay healthy?

Aging is a natural process of the life cycle that can result in morphological, neuromuscular, metabolic, physiological, cognitive and behavioral changes that can compromise quality of life, autonomy, self-esteem, health and life expectancy, especially in the elderly. On the other hand, resistance training (RT) has been widely recommended for the elderly population, due to the numerous health benefits it brings, such as increased strength and muscle mass, reduced body fat, increased bone mineral content and density, and improved cardiometabolic profile, among others. However, the effectiveness of RT in attenuating or reversing the deleterious effects of aging has been analyzed by studies conducted, in most cases, over relatively short periods, i.e., eight to 24 weeks. Considering that recent investigations have demonstrated a wide variation in the adaptive responses to RT in this population, it is likely that many of these responses are time-dependent. Additionally, the influence of important mediators and moderators in this process, especially training intensity and volume, dietary habits, the presence or absence of diseases and degenerative processes that cause disability, and the use of polypharmaceuticals, has not yet been well established. Therefore, based on the Active Aging Longitudinal Study, a research project initiated in 2012, it is intend to analyze whether or not RT practice can produce positive and lasting adaptive responses on muscle strength, body composition, functional fitness, cognition, cardiometabolic biomarkers, and cardiac function in postmenopausal women, based on a randomized controlled clinical trial over a long period of time (two years). In addition, mediation and moderation analyses will be used to understand the real impact of RT on the outcomes to be analyzed.