Combined exercise improves physical fitness and reduces inflammation in sedentary overweight/obese women.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effect of a modified high-intensity functional training program combined with circuit training and concurrent training on physical fitness and selected anti-inflammatory markers in sedentary adult women with overweight or obesity.

METHOD: A longitudinal study with a quasi-experimental intervention design was conducted with 80 women who met the selection criteria and were allocated to experimental and control groups. The experimental group completed a 16-week intervention. Both groups underwent pre-test and post-test assessments of anthropometry, physical fitness, and anti-inflammatory markers.

RESULTS

The study achieved 100% adherence, with no injuries or adverse events reported. Significant improvements were observed in the experimental group when comparing pre-test and post-test results for weight (p < 0.00001), Body Mass Index (BMI) (p < 0.00001), resting heart rate (p = 0.00083), VO2max (p < 0.00001), sit-ups (p < 0.00001), push-ups (p < 0.00001), horizontal jump (p < 0.00001), and IL-4 (p < 0.00001). However, IL-10 did not show significant changes (p = 0.12737).

CONCLUSION

The evaluated intervention led to substantial improvements in most physical fitness variables and produced a significant anti-inflammatory effect on one of the assessed biomarkers. These findings suggest that a combined training approach integrating modified high-intensity functional exercises with circuit and concurrent training may be an effective strategy to enhance physical fitness and modulate inflammatory responses in sedentary women with overweight or obesity.