Slow versus traditional strength training in obese female participants: preliminary results

The aim of this study was to provide comparative data
on a slow versus a traditional supervised resistance
training in an obese female population. Forty obese
female patients admitted to our rehabilitation hospital
were assigned randomly to a slow training group (ST
group; mean age: 47.44 years, mean BMI: 38.53 kg/m2)
and a traditional training group (TT group; mean age:
54.34 years, mean BMI: 39.37 kg/m2). The ST protocol
included five repetitions for five consecutive bouts on
the leg press and extension machine. The duration of
each repetition (concentric+eccentric phases) was 6 s for
leg press and 5 s for leg extension. The initial load was
50% of the one repetition maximum and then gradually
reduced by 20% for each bout. The TT protocol included
six consecutive repetitions for five bouts on the leg
press and leg extension with 80% of the one repetition
maximum load. Both groups performed 10 sessions.
All of the patients were assessed by a visual analogue
scale for pain, a Borg scale for subjective fatigue, and an
isokinetic strength test. Statistically significant strength
improvements were observed in both groups. In ST group
statistically significant improvements in visual analogue scale scores for knee pain were found at post, larger than
that observed in TT group. Subjectively perceived fatigue
on the Borg scale decreased more at post in ST group in
comparison with TT group. Our preliminary data suggest
that ST may represent a preferential strengthening
method in obese patients as it can lead to significant
strength gains with a relatively lower loading effect on the
knee, and hence reduced perception of pain