This study is to examine important factors that affect body composition, senior fitness test(SFT), blood lipid, and age related hormone in relation to the obesity of older women in a 12-week program of Pilates exercise and hemp seed diet for obese older women. The subjects were 40 obese older women aged 65 to 72, divided into four groups: Pilates exercise and hemp seed diet group(n=10), Pilates exercise group(n=10), hemp seed diet group(n=10) and control group(n=10). When it came to Pilates exercise, 60-minute sessions were administered three times a week at RPE 10-11 for the first and second weeks, at RPE 12-13 from the 3rd through the 8th week and at RPE 12-13 from the 9th to the 12th week under the principle of progressive overload in which frequencies and numbers of sets increase. The participants were directed to take 16g of hemp seed every day. The intra-group changes in the measured data were compared and analyzed with a paired t-test, and the inter-group changes with one-way ANOVA, the results of which revealed the following:
Body composition: Body weight was found to decrease significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group, and in the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and decrease more significantly in the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group than the hemp seed diet group and the control group. It turned out that body fat percentage increased significantly in the intra-group control group. It was found that skeletal muscle mass increased significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group.
Senior fitness test(SFT): Cardiovascular endurance appeared to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet and Pilates exercise group, while that of the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group was significantly higher than the control group. Agility and dynamic balance was found to decrease significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group, Pilates exercise group and hemp seed diet group, while that of the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group decreased significantly in comparison to the control group. Lower body flexibility was found to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group. Upper body flexibility turned out to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise group.
Blood lipid: Total cholesterol levels were found to decrease significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group, Pilates exercise group and hemp seed diet group, and those of the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and hemp seed diet group decreased, compared to the control group. High-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels appeared to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were found to decrease significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and hemp seed diet group, while those of the inter-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group decreased significantly in comparison to the Pilates exercise group and the control group.
Age related hormone: DHEAs were found to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group. Estrogen was found to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group and Pilates exercise group, and that of the Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group, the Pilates exercise group and the hemp seed diet group increased significantly, compared to the inter-group control group. Melatonin was found to increase significantly in the intra-group Pilates exercise-hemp seed diet group.
These findings show that Pilates exercise and hemp seed diet enhances their physical ability to maintain balance and prevents aging-related functional degeneration and reduction of age related hormone. Moreover, it is expected that Pilates exercise and hemp seed diet will help prevent age related diseases by preventing muscular atrophy of the elderly and improving their fitness level to maintain movement ability in their daily lives as well as blood lipid.