Aerobic exercise with diet induces hormonal, metabolic, and psychological changes in postmenopausal obese women

Physical activity and diet are recommended lifestyle strategies to improve human health. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the impact of aerobic exercise combined with dietary restriction on hormonal, metabolic, and psychological variables in postmenopausal women. Eligible 60 women were enrolled and assigned into two equal groups; the experimental group performed aerobic exercise three times per week for 12 weeks with diet restriction, and the control group only received the same diet program. Serum levels of sex hormones, insulin resistance, and depression scores were measured before and after the intervention. RESULTS: All measured variables were significantly changed in the experimental group compared to the control group (P = 0.001). CONCLUSION: Changes in sex hormones are a biological marker of metabolic complications such as insulin resistance, which can be reduced with exercise and diet. In addition, they are effective therapeutic interventions in the treatment of mild depression. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registration identifier number of this study is: NCT05136742 on https://register.ClinicalTrials.gov.