[Effects of 4-week ergometry training at an intensity of 30% versus 50% of maximum performance in an inpatient...

We investigated the effects of bicycle ergometer training (BET, weekly training time: 120 min, consisting of 8 units of 15 min). In a centre for cardiovascular rehabilitation two groups of 15 patients with coronary heart disease and/or hypertension and/or hyperlipidaemia underwent a four-weeks training period. All patients avoided other training exercises, they all had the same physiotherapy such a massage and the same diet of 800-1200 kcal/day. Current medication was kept constant. The main differences between the groups was the intensity of the training regimes: 30% versus 50% of the individual maximal physical working capacity (PWC), as determined by symptom-limited bicycle ergometry and controlled by an individual training heart rate. The higher intensity of training led to a highly significant increase of 16% in PWC (p < 0.001), whereas the group with the lower training intensity improved by only 5% (p < 0.05). The main effects on body weight (reduction in both groups of about 6%), fat metabolism (significant reduction in cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels in both groups), heart rate and blood pressure (significant decrease in both groups) showed no significant differences between the two groups. In general it can be assumed that the main effects of the 4-week indoor rehabilitation on fat metabolism and blood pressure are due to the diet and weight loss. The 4-week period of endurance training was obviously too short to produce any additional effects. The more intensive aerobic training, which was more effective on PWC, did not reveal better results on fat metabolism, heart rate or blood pressure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)