A comparison of the immediate effects of resistance, aerobic, and concurrent exercise on postexercise hypotension. The influence of resistance exercise (RE), aerobic exercise (AE), and concurrent exercise (CE) on postexercise hypotension (PEH) is not known. We investigated the immediate blood pressure (BP) lowering effects of exercise after RE, AE, and CE sessions among healthy subjects. Twenty-one men (20.7 ± 0.7 years) performed 4 experimental sessions each in a within-subject design: control (CTL-seated rest for 60 minutes), RE (3 sets at 80% 1RM for 8 exercises, including upper and lower limbs), AE (7-minutes warm-up followed by 50 minutes of cycle ergometer exercise at 65% VO₂peak and 3-minute cooldown), and CE (2 sets at 80% 1RM for 6 exercises among those which composed the RE session, plus 20 minutes of cycle ergometer exercise at 65% VO₂peak, 7-minute warm-up and 3-minute cooldown, exactly in this order). The total duration of each exercise session was approximately 60 minutes. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were assessed by ambulatory monitoring at rest (20 minutes) and every 10 minutes after the exercise during 120 minutes while in the laboratory. The duration of the decrease in SBP was longer after AE and CE (120 minutes) compared to RE (80 minutes); and for DBP after AE (50 minutes) compared to CE (40 minutes) and RE (20 minutes) (p< 0.05). The magnitude of the decrease in SBP and DBP was similar after all exercise sessions and significantly different from CTL (p < 0.05) (SBP: RE = 4.1 ± 2.0 mm Hg, AE = 6.3 ± 1.3 mm Hg, CE = 5.1 ± 2.2 mm Hg; DBP: RE = 1.8 ± 1.1 mm Hg, AE = 1.8 ± 1.0 mm Hg, CE = 1.6 ± 0.6 mm Hg). It was concluded that exercise sessions combining aerobic and resistance activities are as effective as AE sessions and more effective than RE sessions to promote PEH.

The study investigated whether resistance and aerobic concurrent exercise (CE) with different intensities influenced postexercise hypotension (PEH). 21 healthy men (20.7±0.7 yr) performed 4 sessions: control [CTL 60 min of rest], and CE1, CE2, and CE3 consisting respectively of 2 sets of 6 exercises at 80% 1RM followed by 30 min of cycle ergometer exercise at 50%, 65%, and 80% of peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak). All sessions lasted approximately 60 min and began with resistance prior to aerobic sessions. Systolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure (BP) were assessed at baseline and every 10 min during 120-min recovery. The magnitude of SBP decrease was similar after all CE sessions [CE1: 4.2±2.5 mmHg; CE2: 4.8±2.7 mmHg; CE3: 6.0±2.0 mmHg; p=0.06], but the PEH lasted approximately 1 h longer following CE2 and CE3 [120 min] compared to CE1 [60-70 min] (P<0.05). The magnitude of DBP decrease was slightly greater after CE3 and CE2 [2 mmHg] than after CE1 [1 mmHg] (P<0.05), being longer following CE3 [60 min] compared to CE2 and CE1 [40 min] (P<0.05). In conclusion, CE sessions combining resistance and aerobic sessions elicited PEH, especially when the intensity of the aerobic exercise was higher than 65% VO2peak.

It has been proposed that fatigue during strength exercise is negatively influenced by prior proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching. However, it is possible that the effects of PNF on muscle endurance are affected by stretching duration. This study investigated the influence of PNF on the number of repetitions of the leg curl exercise performed with multiple sets and submaximal load. Nineteen men (age 25 ± 1 years, weight 75.8 ± 4.2 kg, height 178.1 ± 3.8 cm, 10-repetition maximum [RM] 78.3 ± 6.9 kg) performed 4 sets of leg curl with 10RM load with and without previous PNF (3 sets of hip flexion either with knees extended or flexed, duration ~2.5 minutes). The total number of repetitions decreased along sets in both situations (38.6% in control and 41.0% in PNF sessions, p < 0.001). However, no difference between control and PNF was detected for the number of repetitions in each set (first set, p = 0.330; second set, p = 0.072; third set, p = 0.061; fourth set, p = 0.150). In conclusion, the number of repetitions performed in multiple sets of the leg curl was not decreased by prior PNF stretching. Therefore, it appears that a moderate level of PNF could be used before resistance exercise with a minimal negative effect.

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