title: Jogging or walking--comparison of health effects.
abstract: The present study compared the different health effects of 6 months' endurance training at two exercise intensities. Seventy-five nonsmoking, sedentary men were randomly assigned to either a home-based, unsupervised exercise program of 4 x 30 min/wk jogging at an intensity of 75% VO2max (n = 28), or of 6 x 30 min/wk walking at an intensity of 50% VO2max (n = 28), or to an inactive control group (n = 19). Exercise adherence and injuries related to exercise training as well as changes in endurance capacity, body fat, and serum lipids were assessed. After 6 months, joggers and walkers showed a similar increase in VO2max as measured by a maximal bicycle ergometer test (2.9 +/- 4.1 ml/kg min, P < 0.01 and 2.5 +/- 5.7 ml/kg min, P < 0.5, respectively). There were no significant changes in blood lipids in either group, although results revealed a significant association between the amount of training (i.e., kilometers exercised) and the increase in high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) in joggers (Pearson's r = 0.42, P < 0.05). In walkers, a significant association between the amount of exercise and the decrease in sum of skinfolds and the waist-hip ratio was observed (Pearson's r = -0.48 and -0.45, P < 0.05 for both). The adherence rate was similar for both training groups with respect to the prescribed intervention goal with an average of 90 +/- 41 min/wk (joggers) and 121 +/- 72 min/wk (walkers) spent on endurance training.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Suter
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Marti
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gutzwiller
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000328:Adult; D000886:Anthropometry; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D006262:Health; D006801:Humans; D007590:Jogging / Q000293:injuries; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010807:Physical Endurance; D016138:Walking
chemical_list: D008076:Cholesterol, HDL