Table 1.
Changes (mean ± SD) between the pre- and post-training time points in the ascending (ASW; n = 15) and descending stair walking (DSW; n = 15) groups for body mass, body mass index (BMI), percent body fat, resting heart rate (HR), systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), maximal voluntary isometric contraction strength of the knee extensors (MVIC), performance in the 30-s chair stand (CS), 2-min step (2MS), 6-m walk (6 MW), 6-m tendon walk (TW) test, balance with eyes open on firm surface (EOFS), balance with eyes closed on unstable surface (ECUS), upper thigh circumference (CIR), and bone mineral density (BMD).
| Group | Pre | Post | Group | Pre | Post | Group | Pre | Post | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Body mass (kg) | ASW | 62.7 ± 6.4 | 62.1 ± 5.9# | BMI (kg/m2) | ASW | 26.1 ± 0.8 | 25.8 ± 0.7# | Body fat (%) | ASW | 34.6 ± 5.3 | 33.4 ± 4.8# |
| DSW | 62.8 ± 5.1 | 61.7 ± 5.2# | DSW | 26.2 ± 1.1 | 25.7 ± 1.1# | DSW | 36.4 ± 3.3 | 35.1 ± 3.4# | |||
| HR (beats/min) | ASW | 80.3 ± 4.7 | 77.1 ± 5.1# | SBP (mmHg) | ASW | 122.6 ± 11.7 | 118.5 ± 12.4# | DBP (mmHg) | ASW | 69.3 ± 7.7 | 65.6 ± 7.5# |
| DSW | 79.2 ± 4.5 | 71.5 ± 6.2#,* | DSW | 119.9 ± 9.3 | 109.7 ± 10.8#,* | DSW | 69.1 ± 7.2 | 64.1 ± 7.1# | |||
| MVIC (N) | ASW | 245.3 ± 29.4 | 280.5 ± 27.3# | CS (times) | ASW | 16.5 ± 1.4 | 19.9 ± 1.6# | 2MS (times) | ASW | 111.0 ± 5.1 | 118.9 ± 6.0# |
| DSW | 262.4 ± 25.5 | 352.2 ± 55.7#,* | DSW | 15.0 ± 1.3 | 21.3 ± 3.5#,* | DSW | 110.1 ± 4.7 | 122.2 ± 14.5# | |||
| 6 MW (m) | ASW | 467.0 ± 38.9 | 482.6 ± 34.2# | TW (s) | ASW | 27.1 ± 4.2 | 24.0 ± 2.7# | EOFS (SI) | ASW | 0.69 ± 0.06 | 0.64 ± 0.07# |
| DSW | 460.1 ± 31.3 | 496.1 ± 41.6# | DSW | 26.3 ± 4.0 | 21.6 ± 4.7# | DSW | 0.68 ± 0.05 | 0.52 ± 0.09#,* | |||
| ECUS (SI) | ASW | 2.86 ± 0.20 | 2.72 ± 0.31# | CIR (cm) | ASW | 48.1 ± 3.7 | 48.4 ± 3.6# | BMD (m/s) | ASW | 1492.3 ± 66.3 | 1496.8 ± 36.1 |
| DSW | 2.88 ± 0.25 | 2.08 ± 0.43#,* | DSW | 48.6 ± 2.6 | 49.2 ± 2.5# | DSW | 1487.5 ± 55.3 | 1576.9 ± 69.7#,* |
#: significant (p ≤ 0.05) difference compared with the pre-training level. *: significant (p ≤ 0.05) difference compared with the ASW group.