title: Is aerobic dance an effective alternative to walk-jog exercise training?
abstract: In order to compare the physiological effects of an 8 week aerobic dance program to those of a walk-jog exercise training program, 60 male and female University employees ages 24-48 years were randomly assigned to an aerobic dance program (N = 22), a walk-jog program (N = 24), or a sedentary control group (N = 15). Subjects who had an exercise compliance rate less than or equal to 85% were dropped from the study, as were control subjects who had scheduling conflicts or illnesses precluding post-treatment testing. Thirty-five subjects completed the 8 week period with a compliance rate greater than or equal to 85%, leaving 14 in the aerobics group, 11 in the walk-jog group and 10 in the control group. Significant increases (p less than 0.001) in maximal oxygen uptake occurred in both the aerobics (+3.9 ml/kg-1/min-1) and walk-jog group (+3.4 ml/kg-1/min-1), while no significant change was observed in the control group. Peak heart rate decreased significantly (p less than 0.05) in the aerobics (-4 b/min-1) and walk-jog groups (-3 b/min-1 but was unchanged in the control group (-1 b/min-1) following the treatment period. Body weight, peak respiratory exchange ratio and peak minute ventilation remained the same in the aerobics, walk-jog and control groups throughout the treatment period. It is concluded that aerobic dance programs can result in similar improvements in aerobic power as a walk-jog program. Thus, an aerobic dance program is an effective alternative to a traditional walk-jog training regime.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine (Cardiology), Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island, Pawtucket.
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Garber
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: McKinney
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Carleton
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003615:Dancing / Q000502:physiology*; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007590:Jogging / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D010806:Physical Education and Training / Q000379:methods*; D011897:Random Allocation; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*