Effects of Resistance and Endurance Exercises on Serum Androgens, Cortisol and Lactate in Menopause Women

Document Type : Original Article

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of resistance and endurance exercises on 
the acute response of androgens, cortisol and lactate in elderly postmenopausal women. 
Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional research, 10 elderly postmenopausal women (Age=54.3±3.74 
years, BMI= 24.88±2.07kg/m-2) participated in three protocols: 1) Resistance protocol (1 session, 3 sets of 10 
repetitions of eight exercises with %80 1RM), 2) Endurance protocol (45 minutes of cycling at 60-70% Vo2max) 
and 3) Rest protocol (control group). Blood samples were taken before, immediately after, and 15 minutes after 
the end of each protocol. Finally, the serum levels of testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, cortisol and 
blood lactate were measured and the data was analyzed using GLM-Repeated Measures (ANOVA) at a 
Significance level of P<0.05. 
Results: Both resistance and endurance groups showed a significant increase in androgen and lactate serum 
levels after resistance and endurance exercises (P<0.05). But variations in androgens and lactate levels were 
not significant between the groups. There was no significant difference in within-group cortisol concentration, 
but there was a significant difference in cortisol levels between the groups in endurance exercise: after the 
endurance protocol, there were higher levels of cortisol in endurance group compared to resistance and rest 
groups. 
Discussion and Conclusion: The results showed that a single bout of resistance exercise or endurance 
exercise does not acutely influence an

Keywords

• Androgens
• Cortisol
• lactate
• Exercise
• Elderly women

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