Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences

Effect of Exercise Training Intensity on Brain and Body Blood Vessel Function During Perimenopause (The PERI-VASC Study)

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As females enter menopause, blood vessel function can begin to decline due to a reduction in hormone levels in the body. This study aims to identify the effects of high intensity interval training (HIIT) and moderate intensity interval training (MIIT) on preserving blood vessel function in the brain and throughout the body during menopausal transition.

Participants will be asked to:

1. Undergo several tests which assess your current blood vessel function by ultrasound , cardiorespiratory fitness, menopausal symptoms, hormone levels, and body composition prior to beginning exercise training.

2. Participate in either a HIIT, MIIT or non-exercising control group. Exercising participants will undergo a 12 week exercise training program (3 times a week ) at the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences.

3. Following exercise training, return to the lab to undergo an identical battery of tests to identify any changes in blood vessel function, cardiorespiratory fitness, menopausal symptoms, hormone levels, and body composition following the exercise training

Optional: You will also have the option to participate in a sub-study which will assess how hormone levels change in response to exercise as well as how exercise training can affect this response. This would occur during 3 of your exercise sessions over the 12 weeks where blood will be sampled before, during and after the exercise session.

Eligibility

You will be eligible to participate if you:

  • Are female
  • Are in late perimenopause =>60 days between consecutive menstrual cycles
  • Are physically able to engage in cycling exercise
  • Are free of any preexisting cardiovascular, respiratory, or metabolic disease.
  • Are not exceeding current physical activity aerobic exercise guidelines (i.e. 300min/week of moderate-vigorous intensity exercise)

You will not be eligible to participate if you:

  • Are taking hormone therapy or have taken hormone therapy in the last 3 months
  • Are currently taking/using hormonal contraceptives (ie. OCP, IUD, transdermal patch, etc.)
  • Are a current smoker/vaper or have smoked or vaped in the last year
  • Are taking any medications which may affect blood vessel function (anti-hypertensives, diabetes medication, inhalers, etc.)
  • Have a Body Mass Index (BMI) ≥35 kg/m2 and a waist circumference of >88cm 

Participant benefits

Your participation in this research may not directly benefit you. However, you will undergo several assessments of your overall health, gaining insight into your current degree of cardiovascular disease risk. You will also be provided with free supervised exercise training.

If you wish to participate in the optional sub-study, you will also receive a $20 gift card for each of the sub-study testing sessions you participate in for a total of $60 in renumeration. These gift cards will be distributed at the end of the study period.

Register your interest 

To register your interest please contact Conan Shing: conan.shing@uq.edu.au.

This study has been approved by The University of Queensland Human Research Ethics Committee [Approval No.2024/HE001370]