title: Body composition and physical self-concept in older women.
abstract: We sought to determine the performance and anthropometric correlates of physical self-concept and self-esteem and to observe whether long-term resistance training would alter these variables in postmenopausal women. Forty-four nonsmoking, community-dwelling, Caucasian women aged 50-75 years participated in the study. Half of the subjects participated in a 9-month regimen of weight-bearing exercises performed 3 times per week which emphasized lower body muscle strength and power development. At baseline, total body fat was negatively associated with physical self-concept and perception of physical appearance but not with self-esteem. Perception of physical appearance improved in both exercisers and controls after the 9-month trial but was most noticeable in exercisers who had low self-esteem at baseline. The only predictor of improvement in perception of physical appearance was a decrease in lower body fat mass. Minimal or nonsignificant change in psychological measures associated with the training may be due to high initial values.
authors.affiliation: University of Utah, Department of Exercise and Sport Science, 250 S. 1850 E. Rm 251, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0920, USA. Janet.Shaw@health.utah.edu
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Ebbeck
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Snow
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001823:Body Composition; D001828:Body Image; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015444:Exercise / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D017698:Postmenopause / Q000523:psychology; D012649:Self Concept; D016387:Women's Health