Effects of exercise modalities on heart rate recovery and its association with cardiometabolic risk in adolescents with overweight or obesity

by Rubin Pooni, Silva Arslanian, Heather Edgell, Hala Tamim, SoJung Lee, Jennifer L. Kuk

Objective

Attenuated heart rate recovery (HRR) immediately after exercise is an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease and mortality in adults. We examined the effects of aerobic exercise (AE), resistance exercise (RE), and combined AE and RE on HRR, and the relationship of HRR with body composition and metabolic risk factors in adolescents with overweight or obesity.

Research design and methods

We included 147 adolescents (BMI ≥ 85^th percentile, 12–18 years) who participated in exercise intervention studies (3–6 months), and had a complete data set including VO_2peak, body composition by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, and cardiometabolic risk factors before and after the interventions. HRR was calculated as the difference between peak HR during the maximal treadmill test and HR at 1-, 2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-min after the cessation of the test.

Results

After interventions, a faster HRR at 2–5 min was observed following AE (17.3–25.6% change, P P P P P 2peak. Changes in HRR were not associated with the changes in % body fat or metabolic risk factors.

Conclusion

AE training is more beneficial than RE or combined AE and RE training for improving HRR in adolescents with overweight or obesity.