Influence of the number of weekly resistance training sessions in health users of an exercise program in a corporate wellness center

• Published in: Motricidade Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 178
• Main Authors: Serra, Rhodes, Dias, Marcelo, Simão, Roberto, Matos, Filipe, Vilaça, José, Saavedra, Francisco
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ribeira de Pena Edições Desafio Singular 01.01.2017
• Subjects: Body composition; Flexibility; Strength training; Wellness programs
• ISSN: 1646-107X; 2182-2972

Resistance Training exercises (RT) have been shown to improve physical condition and health. However, very few is known about the influence of the number of weekly sessions in relation to RT practitioners in corporate wellness centers, designed to promote the health of workers. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of number of weekly RT sessions on body composition (percentage of body fat, lean body mass and waist circumference), strength, flexibility and mental health of adults participating in wellness programs corporative. Sixty seven subjects (39 men and 28 women) aged between 30 and 45 years, were divided into three groups, according to the weekly frequency of training (2, 3 and 4 /week) and were submitted to the same RT methodology with 12 weeks. 10RM tests were performed for bench press, leg press and lat pulldown exercises, assessment of body composition and application of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 12) at baseline and after three months of training. All groups showed increases in loads of 10RM for all exercises after three months of training (p <0.05). The flexibility revealed a significant increase pre and post-training for all groups (p <0.05). In QHG 12, significant differences were observed (p <0.05) between the pre and post-intervention for all groups. Only in the group that trained four times a week there was a significant difference (p <0.05) in the percentage of fat, pre- and post-intervention. RT as a component of a corporate wellness program tends to improve strength, body composition, flexibility and psychological state of its practitioners. The number of weekly sessions had no significant impact on most of the variables.