Influence of domestic and community exercise programs on the physical fitness, arterial blood pressure, and biochemical variables in hypertensive patients

a week. In both programs, the data were assessed every three months and treated by repeated measures ANOVA (p < 0.05). Results and conclusion: The results suggested the exer- cise programs elicited positive effects, mainly in body com- position and fat regional distribution. The repercussions on blood pressure, despite the fact of being statistically identified, seemed to be less consistent. There were not meaningful effects over the blood biochemical profile. The authors concluded that non-formal exercise programs can be related to favorable changes in overall condition of hy- pertensive patients, but their potential to elicit more spe- cific changes should be better studied in the future. ABSTRACT Background and purposes: Physical activity is accept- ed as a complementary strategy in the hypertension treat- ment. However, few studies were concerned with the ef- fects of exercise programs which encourage a less strict training control, especially non-supervised programs. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the effects of two non-for- mal exercise programs on the blood pressure ( BP), physi- cal fitness and biochemical blood profile in hypertensive adults. Methods: Two groups were observed during 18 months: a) 29 subjects engaged in a domestic program (CLINEX) (age: 53 ± 11 yr); b) 42 subjects practicing calis- thenics in a community program (NPRC) (age: 62 ± 9 yr). The following variables were assessed: BP, body weight, body fat percent, body mass index, sum of skin folds, waist- hip ratio, cardiorespiratory capacity, and biochemical vari- ables (total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, plasma triglycerides, and blood glucose). The domestic program consisted in home- based programmed activities (walking and stretching ex- ercises), held three times/week. The subjects were specifi- cally trained for controlling the intensity and duration of the exercise, and filled an individual chart which was peri- odically delivered to the research group. The community program proposed hospital-based calisthenics and aerobic activities ministered by exercise specialists, also three times