Comparing Aerobic to Resistance Exercise in Recovery

Background. In a growing body of research that has investigated exercise rehabilitation in patients with cancer, dramatic improvements in physiological and psychological functioning have been documented in patients participating in aerobic exercise programs. However, the majority of studies have been done exclusively in women with early stage breast cancer using a walking exercise protocol. Research now needs to test exercise protocols other than walking in patients with cancers other than breast and in patients with more advanced disease. Purpose. The purpose of this study is to compare the health outcomes of a 12-week exercise program focused on aerobic training (using a treadmill) to a 12-week exercise program focused on resistance training (using Thera-Bands®) in sedentary patients within 6 months of completing treatment for cancer. Research Questions. (1) In sedentary persons within six months of completing treatment for cancer, what are the differences over time in cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular fitness, fatigue, sleep, health status, and quality of life in those who participate in a 12-week aerobic training program as compared with those who participate in a 12-week resistance training program? (2) Determine the correlations between objective and subjective measures of sleep in patients with cancer participating in two different exercise training programs. (3) Determine the correlations between fatigue and both objective and subjective measures of sleep in patients with cancer participating in two different exercise training programs. Framework. Roy Adaptation Model. Design. Experimental. Sample. Military beneficiaries receiving care at Brooke Army Medical Center and Wilford Hall Air Force Medical Center. Outcome Variables. Cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular fitness, activity and rest patterns, fatigue, health status, and quality of life. Plan for Analysis. Repeated-measures analysis-of-variance and correlations.