UA Researchers Find Two-Day Workout As Effective As Three-Day

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - No time to exercise? A new study from the University of Arkansas may have women scrambling for another excuse.

By moderately increasing the intensity of their workout, women can gain the same health benefits from weight training two days a week as they would from working out three days a week, say exercise scientists Ro DiBrezzo and Inza Fort. What’s more, the souped-up workout takes only five to eight minutes longer than a regular weight training session.

"The number one reason women give for not exercising is that they don’t have time to fit it in between work and kids and all their other responsibilities," said DiBrezzo. "Under those circumstances, exercise becomes another source of stress rather than a stress reliever."

Fort and DiBrezzo set out to discover whether women could cut their workout time by one third and still achieve significant results. They presented their findings this year at the annual meeting of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

To begin their study, the researchers recruited 59 women between the ages of 45 and 60, none of whom had attempted weight training as exercise before. The researchers assessed each subject for body weight, percent body fat, girth measurements, flexibility and strength (judged by a one-repetition maximum - or how much weight the woman could lift at one try). They then randomly divided the subjects into two groups.

Each group performed an eight-week weight routine that included eight exercises - bench press, standing lat pull, seated lat pull, biceps curl, triceps extension, abdominals, leg press and leg curl. However, the groups approached this regimen somewhat differently.

The first group (3x) worked out three times a week, performing three sets of eight repetitions for each exercise and lifting 60 percent of their original one-repetition maximum (1RM). The second group (2x) exercised only twice a week, completing three sets of 14 repetitions and lifting 50 percent of their 1RM.

"We were careful to equate intensity and load between the two groups," Fort said. "The groups were almost exactly even in the amount of total weight lifted over the course of a week."

By the end of eight weeks, both groups had made significant health gains while showing little statistical variance between those gains. In other words, the women who exercised two days a week reaped virtually the same benefits as those who worked out three times a week.

The 2x group reduced their body fat by an average of 2.1 percent while those in the 3x group lost 2.8 percent. Additionally, both groups increased their flexibility, with the 2x group reaching an average of 1.7 inches farther and the 3x subjects reaching 1.2 inches farther.

Both groups significantly improved their strength, with the 2x subjects showing somewhat slower results on only three exercises - the standing lat pull, the triceps extension and the leg press. All subjects increased their upper body strength by at least 15 percent, with some experiencing up to 45 percent improvement. Increases in lower body strength ranged from 15 to 35 percent.

Unfortunately, building stronger muscles did not result in either group losing weight.

"Both groups lost just a smidgen, one or two pounds, but they saw at least a two percent decrease in body fat. We wanted these women to concentrate on gaining a healthy body composition rather than losing weight," Fort said. "Muscle weighs more than fat, but it’s also more efficient at burning calories."

DiBrezzo believes the duration of the study limited weight loss results. After only eight weeks, subjects were already noticing that their clothes fit more loosely, she said. Had the experiment gone on longer, the women would have continued to firm up and would have shed more pounds.

Weight training leads to greater muscle fitness, which in turn boosts metabolism. But DiBrezzo cautions that this type of exercise represents only one facet of a complete fitness

regimen. If women hope to get in shape, they should participate both in weight training and aerobic exercise.

"There are a lot of women out there already doing aerobics, which is a great cardiovascular workout, but it neglects muscle fitness," DiBrezzo said. "What’s great about this study is that it trims the weight training workout down to two days a week - all the better to fit in to your aerobics schedule.

"It’s important to include both," she added. "I’d go so far as to say that it doesn’t matter how thin you are. If you don’t have muscle fitness, you’re not in shape."

Aerobics may burn calories and improve cardiovascular stamina, but weight training provides multiple benefits. In addition to building muscle, it improves balance and stability - which becomes increasingly important as people age and are more prone to falls. Weight training also builds greater support for one’s spine, which can straighten posture and ease chronic back pain.

In addition, greater strength builds greater confidence, said DiBrezzo. Women tend to feel empowered and more self-reliant when they know their muscles are in shape. In fact, those who participated in the study reported a significant boost to their confidence not only in self-image but also in self-efficacy.

Because DiBrezzo and Fort had selected older women to participate in the study, they were particularly interested to see how the subjects would adapt to the weight room - an environment typically filled with young fitness buffs and athletes.

"We spent a relatively long time teaching them proper lifting technique not only to prevent injuries but also to make them feel competent when they’re in the weight room," said DiBrezzo.

By the end of eight weeks, the researchers found that their middle-aged subjects were actually working out with the young people in the gym - offering to spot them and working in sets.

"That’s quite a unique thing - to see a 50-year-old woman spotting a 200-pound male student on weights," DiBrezzo said. "You can see how far these women came in eight weeks."

# # #