The effectiveness of bench step exercise for ameliorating acute mental stress-induced arterial stiffening

Abstract

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of bench step (BS) exercise for ameliorating arterial stiffening caused by acute mental stress (MS). Methods Fifteen young healthy men participated in two randomized trials: rest (RE) and exercise (EX) trials. Following a 5-min MS task (first task), the RE trial participants rested on a chair for 10 min (from 10 to 20 min after task cessation); the EX trial participants performed BS exercise for the same duration. At 40 min after the first task, the participants performed the same task (second task) again. Heart–brachial pulse wave velocity (PWV) (hbPWV), brachial–ankle PWV (baPWV), heart–ankle PWV (haPWV), and the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) were measured simultaneously at 5, 30, and 50 min after the first task. Results Both trials caused significant elevations in hbPWV, haPWV, and CAVI at 5 min after the first task; these changes persisted until 30 min after the task in the RE trial, while they were abolished in the EX trial. baPWV significantly increased at 30 min after the task in the RE trial, but not in the EX trial. After the second task (from 30 to 50 min after the first task), none of the parameters significantly increased in the RE trial, although the values remained above baseline levels. In the EX trial, hbPWV, haPWV, and CAVI showed significant elevations. Conclusion Our findings suggest that a 10-min BS exercise after acute MS can counteract stress-induced arterial stiffening, but has only a limited effect against subsequent acute MS. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00421-022-04962-y.

Three-minute bench step exercise as a countermeasure for acute mental stress-induced arterial stiffening

“…Subsequently, the participants in the RE trial rested on a comfortable chair for 3 minutes (from 10 to 13 minutes after the completion of the task), whereas those in the EX trial performed the BS exercise for 3 minutes using a step bench (Stepwell 2; Konami, Tokyo, Japan) set at a height of 20 cm. The step rhythm was individualized for each participant to target a rate of perceived exertion (RPE) of 11-13 (Borg scale, 6-20) because it was difficult to regulate exercise intensity with steady-state heart rate (HR) values as in our previous studies [7,8] due to the short exercise duration; the target RPE was set according to a previous report [18]. Except for the seated rest or exercise periods, the participants remained in the supine position throughout the experimental session.…”

“…Based on our previous studies [6][7][8], we used mental arithmetic as the MS task. The participants were asked to serially subtract 13 from a 3-digit number as quickly and accurately as possible for a period of 5 minutes.…”

“…The sample size required for this study was calculated using G � Power version 3.1 (Heinrich Heine University Du ¨sseldorf, Du ¨sseldorf, Germany). Based on our previous studies [6][7][8], the effect size (ES) was set to 0.25 using a within-between interaction of two-way repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). The α-and β-levels were set to 0.05 and 0.2 (80% power), respectively.…”

“…Chronic mental stress (MS) is also known to be detrimental for vascular health [5]. Importantly, even a brief acute episode of MS induces a transient increase in arterial stiffness as assessed by the PWV [6][7][8][9][10]. Both acute response and chronic adaptation of the vasculature to MS have been indicated to be probably relevant [11,12]; thus, repeated exposures to episodic increases in arterial stiffness and its accumulation due to acute MS in daily life may lead to an increase in the basal levels of arterial stiffness.…”

“…Our group previously reported that performing a 10-minute cycling exercise immediately after acute MS can counteract stress-induced arterial stiffening [7]. In a subsequent study [8], to improve the applicability of this exercise strategy in real life, we used a bench step (BS) exercise that can be conveniently performed in different settings, including the office and home. The results indicated that 10-minute BS exercise after acute MS was effective in offsetting stress-induced arterial stiffening; however, the exercise had only a limited effect against subsequent acute MS. Our findings may provide a basis to recommend engaging in brief exercise every time a stressful situation arises.…”