Relationship between the practice of unsupervised walking and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in adults and elderly

Abstract

Remain physically active through the practice of walking is highly recommended by health professionals in order to avoid, minimize or reverse various health disorders that can compromise a good quality of life for the population. Objective: To verify if the non supervised walk has enough stimulation to reduce risk factors of cardiovascular disease in adults and the elderly. Methods: This study included 225 healthy men and women who were divided in 4 groups: sedentary (G0), walk (G1), walk an extra activity (G2), and walk and 2 extra activities (G3). All participants performed the following assessments: questionnaire IPAQ, AAHPERD battery tests, blood pressure, lipid profile and body composition. Results: The results suggest that practice of non supervised walk (G1) promotes limited benefits to the health when compared to G3 (general functional fitness index = 273.4±111 vs 340.6±92; diastolic blood pressure = 80.0±8 vs 75.4±7 mmHg; HDL cholesterol = 44.3±10 vs 50.1±10 mg/dL respectively). Conclusions: The increased number of activities (G3) was considered beneficial to reduce the risk factors of cardiovascular disease compared to sedentary (G0) and walk (G1) groups.