The Study
A Randomized, Controlled Trial of Resistance Training Added to Caloric Restriction Plus Aerobic Exercise Training in Obese Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction
This study is like a fair test where two groups of people tried different ways to get healthier. One group added weightlifting to their diet and walking, and the other didn’t. The results show that the weightlifting group got stronger and their muscles worked better — but they didn’t get better at walking or breathing than the other group. So we can say weightlifting made muscles stronger, but not that it made hearts work better.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
Older people with heart problems and extra weight lost weight by eating less and walking/cycling. Some also lifted weights to see if they could get stronger and keep more muscle.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 579 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes — even without gaining muscle mass, stronger and more efficient muscles mean better daily function and less risk of falling or becoming frail.
- 2People who lifted weights got 5.4% stronger in their legs and their muscles worked 8.7% better — but they still lost the same amount of muscle (2.1 kg) as those who didn't lift weights.
- 3Both groups improved their heart fitness by 5–7% and felt better.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Circulation. Heart failure
Year
2022
Authors
P. Brubaker, B. Nicklas, D. Houston, W. Hundley, Haiying Chen, Anthony J A Molina, W. M. Lyles, Benjamin Nelson, B. Upadhya, Russell Newland, D. Kitzman
Related Content
Claims (6)
In older adults who are obese and have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, a program of reduced calorie intake and aerobic exercise increases quality of life scores on the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire by 17 to 23 points after 20 weeks, and adding resistance training provides no additional benefit.
In older adults who are obese and have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, adding resistance training to diet and aerobic exercise increases leg muscle strength by 5.4% and muscle quality by 8.7% over 20 weeks without increasing muscle size.
In older adults who are obese and have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, losing calories and doing aerobic exercise for 20 weeks increases peak oxygen consumption by 5–7%. Adding strength training to this routine does not increase oxygen consumption further.
In older adults who are obese and have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, losing weight through reduced calorie intake and aerobic exercise causes a loss of about 2.1 kilograms of skeletal muscle over 20 weeks, and adding strength training does not stop this muscle loss.
In older adults who are obese and have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, losing calories through diet and doing aerobic exercise lowers heart muscle mass and stiffening of arteries; adding weight training does not lower them further.
People who do resistance training while eating fewer calories gain more muscular strength than people who eat fewer calories without resistance training.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.