High‐intensity interval neuromuscular training promotes exercise behavioral regulation, adherence and weight loss in inactive obese women

Abstract

It is unclear how high-intensity, interval-type nontraditional exercise training programmes can be feasible and effective options for inactive obese individuals. This randomized controlled trial investigated the hypothesis that a 10-month high-intensity, interval-type neuromuscular training programme (DoIT) with adjunct portable modalities, performed in a small-group setting, induces improvements in psychological well-being, subjective vitality and exercise behavioural regulations in obese women. Associations between adherence, psychological and physiological indicators were also investigated. Forty-nine previously inactive obese females (36.4 ± 4.4 yrs) were randomly assigned to three groups (control; N = 21, 10-month training; N = 14, or 5-month training plus 5 month-detraining; N = 14). DoIT was a supervised, progressive, and time-efficient (<30 min) programme that used 10-12 functional/neuromotor exercises and prescribed work and rest time intervals (20-40 sec) in a circuit fashion (1-3 rounds) for 10 months. Questionnaires were used to measure psychological distress, subjective vitality, and behavioural regulations in exercise at pre-, mid-, and post-intervention. The 10-month training reduced psychological distress (72%, p = 0.001), external regulation (75%, p = 0.011) and increased vitality (53%, p = 0.001), introjected regulation (63%, p = 0.001), intrinsic regulation (33%, p = 0.004), and identified regulation (88%, p = 0.001). A moderate to strong positive relationship was found between adherence rate and identified regulation scores (r = 0.59, p = 0.001) and between VO 2 peak and identified regulation scores (r = 0.59, p = 0.001). A mild dissociation between exercise intensity and perceived exertion was also observed. Our novel findings suggest that a 10-month implementation of a high-intensity interval neuromuscular training programme promotes positive psychological adaptations provoking exercise behavioural regulation and adherence while inducing weight loss in inactive obese women.

A Group-Based 8-Week Functional Interval-Type Outdoor Training Program Improves Physical Performance in Recreationally Active Adults

“…Further, almost one quarter of the participants reported in the post-test that they will continue this type of training after finishing the study, which indicates that the concept successfully motivated people to perform in regular intensive activity. These findings were in line with other reported results (Oliveira et al, 2018;Batrakoulis et al, 2020). Participants' motivation is often increased in courses with a fixed social framework, as these courses try to combine the training with the joy of social interaction.…”

“…Since the benefits of these individual elements have been recently identified, combining them have shown to be a promising approach for people to improve their fitness in a timeefficient way. Previous investigations have shown promising, but also different outcomes depending on the specific training protocol (de Vreede et al, 2005;Buckley et al, 2015;Myers et al, 2015;Roy et al, 2018;Evangelista et al, 2019;Menz et al, 2019;Batrakoulis et al, 2020). We hypothesize that functional, and intensive interval training in a circuit format will lead to significant improvements in physical fitness in a training group compared to a non-intervention control group.…”

“…One such method is high-intensity interval training (HIIT) (Jones et al, 2011;Batrakoulis et al, 2020). By combining short, high-intensity bouts and e.g., functional strength exercises, this method aims for maximal training success with minimal time effort (Roy et al, 2018).…”

“…By combining short, high-intensity bouts and e.g., functional strength exercises, this method aims for maximal training success with minimal time effort (Roy et al, 2018). The benefits of this type of training program have been shown repeatedly for various unhealthy and healthy populations (Nybo et al, 2010;Gibala et al, 2012;Batrakoulis et al, 2018Batrakoulis et al, , 2020. For patient groups, these programs are especially beneficial for improving peoples' motivation, body composition and functional movements (Nybo et al, 2010;Gibala et al, 2012;Midtgaard et al, 2013;Kampshoff et al, 2015;Devin et al, 2016;Schmitt et al, 2016).…”

Effects of Elastic Band Exercise on Functional Fitness and Blood Pressure Response in the Healthy Elderly

“…Circuit exercise training is physically less challenging and requires only 30~45 min for each session [ 18 ]. As a result, circuit exercise training, when compared with conventional resistance or aerobic exercise training [ 19 ], can promote higher adherence while improving muscle mass, strength, and cardiovascular fitness [ 20 , 21 ].…”