Moreira Helena, Tuccella Chiara, Alves Emília, Teixeira Andreia, Moreira Carlos, Oliveira Irene, Bonavolontà Valerio, Abrantes Catarina
Department of Sport Science, Exercise and Health, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal.
Research Center in Sports Sciences, Health Sciences and Human Development (CIDESD), University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 Aug 1;22(8):1216. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22081216.
Physical activity, particularly when practiced in natural settings, has well-established benefits for overall health, sleep, and body composition. These effects are especially important for postmenopausal women, although research specifically targeting this population remains limited. The study evaluated a 16-week multicomponent outdoor exercise program (cardiorespiratory, strength, balance, coordination, and flexibility training) in postmenopausal women, consisting of three 60 min sessions per week. Participants were non-randomly assigned to an experimental group (EG, n = 55) and a control group (CG, n = 20). Measurements were taken at baseline and after 16 weeks, including body composition, sleep (duration and quality), and connection with nature. No significant differences were observed between groups at baseline. After the intervention, the EG and CG presented significant differences ( ≤ 0.01) in the rates of change in body mass, fat mass (FM; -9.26% and -1.21%, respectively), and visceral fat level (VFL; -13.46 points and -3.80 points). These differences were also observed for the sleep fragmentation index ( ≤ 0.01), but not for connection with nature. A significant interaction effect ( < 0.01) of time × group was observed for %FM, VFL, and appendicular skeletal muscle mass. Exercise duration had an effect ( = 0.043) on participants' personal and affective identification with nature, and the time × group × medication interaction significantly influenced sleep efficiency ( = 0.034). The exercise program proved effective in reducing total and central adiposity levels; however, it did not lead to improvements in sleep duration, sleep quality, or connection with nature.
体育活动，尤其是在自然环境中进行时，对整体健康、睡眠和身体组成具有公认的益处。这些影响对绝经后女性尤为重要，尽管针对这一人群的具体研究仍然有限。该研究评估了一项针对绝经后女性的为期16周的多组分户外运动计划（心肺、力量、平衡、协调和柔韧性训练），每周包括三个60分钟的课程。参与者被非随机分配到实验组（EG，n = 55）和对照组（CG，n = 20）。在基线和16周后进行测量，包括身体组成、睡眠（时长和质量）以及与自然的联系。两组在基线时未观察到显著差异。干预后，实验组和对照组在体重、脂肪量（FM；分别为-9.26%和-1.21%）和内脏脂肪水平（VFL；分别为-13.46分和-3.80分）的变化率上呈现出显著差异（≤0.01）。睡眠碎片化指数也观察到了这些差异（≤0.01），但与自然的联系方面未观察到差异。对于%FM、VFL和附属骨骼肌质量，观察到时间×组别的显著交互作用（<0.01）。运动时长对参与者与自然的个人和情感认同有影响（=0.043），时间×组别×药物的交互作用对睡眠效率有显著影响（=0.034）。该运动计划被证明在降低总体和中心肥胖水平方面有效；然而，它并未导致睡眠时间、睡眠质量或与自然的联系得到改善。
