Effects of walking with hand-held weights on energy expenditure and excess postexercise oxygen consumption

Walking is not only important to assist in performing daily tasks, but also to gain cardiovascular benefits. Further research on walking is needed to examine the physiological responses to improve health and reduce the risks of cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this study was to compare the energy expenditure (EE) during and after walking exercise with versus without hand-held weights (HHW). Nineteen sedentary women (mean±standard deviation; age, 21±2.7 years, height, 163.1±6.3 cm; body mass, 66.6± 15.1 kg; body fat %, 30.6%± 7.43%; body mass index, 25.5± 5.7 kg/m²) volunteered walking with versus without 1.36 kg of HHW in two randomized sessions. The study consisted of 30 min of exercise followed b silent sitting for 30 min. The range of motion was set at elbow flexion at 90° while arms were alternated 30.48 cm forward and backward. 1% incline was set for the treadmill grade and speed was controlled to a moderate level of 40%-59% of heart rate reserve. During the 30-min exercise no significant differences were found between the conditions (P> 0.05). The physiological responses were significantly greater directly after exercise compared with baseline as determined from pairwise comparisons collapsed across conditions (P≤ 0.05). Walking with HHW was not substantial enough to raise EE beyond normal walking and led to an increased effort level. Additionally, the moderate intensity of walking was not enough to sustain EE at a surpassing level directly after the exercise.