Elastic band resistance training increases adropin and ameliorates some cardiometabolic risk factors in elderly women: A quasi-experimental study

BACKGROUND: The decline in adropin over the aging process is associated with cardiometabolic risks, and resistance training may affect this decline. We hypothesized that elastic band resistance training (EBRT) would be an effective exercise for increasing adropin and improving the cardiometabolic profile in elderly women. METHODS: We randomly assigned 28 overweight elderly women (age = 74.04 ± 4.69 years) into one of two groups, EBRT (n = 14) or control (CON; n = 14), to participate in a 12-week (3d/wk) supervised EBRT program. The serum levels of adropin and cardiometabolic risk factors were evaluated at baseline and after the intervention. The exercise training protocol consisted of three supervised training sessions (55 min) per week for 12 weeks. Data were analyzed using two-way repeated-measures ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficient. RESULTS: EBRT significantly increased serum adropin levels (p = 0.026), number of repetitions in the 30-second chair-stand test (p = 0.016), and number of repetitions in the 30-second arm curl test (p = 0.032). Moreover, EBRT significantly decreased serum levels of insulin (p = 0.035), TNF-α (p = 0.046), hsCRP (p = 0.037), and insulin resistance (p = 0.045) as well as body fat percentage (p = 0.023). There were no significant between-group differences (p > 0.05) in glucose, TC, TG, LDL-C, HDL-C, BMI, and WHR; however, glucose, TC, TG, and BMI significantly changed in the EBRT group (within-group). Furthermore, adropin correlated with body fat percentage (p = 0.020) and BMI (p = 0.014) at pretest and with body fat percentage at posttest (p = 0.016), however, delta values were not significantly related. No correlation was observed between adropin and other biomarkers at any stage of the study. CONCLUSION: EBRT can increase serum adropin levels, which has been associated with improved insulin sensitivity, inflammation, body fat percentage, and physical function in overweight elderly women.