Serious adverse events were rare , and no serious events were reported to be directly related to the exercise programme .
This review provides evidence that PRT is an effective intervention for improving physical functioning in  older people , including improving strength and the performance of some simple and complex activities .
BACKGROUND Muscle weakness in old age is associated with physical function decline .
Progressive resistance strength training ( PRT ) exercises are design ed to increase strength .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of PRT on older people and identify adverse events .
High-intensity strength training of patients enrolled in an outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program.
PURPOSE This r and omized controlled study assessed whether adding a program of high-intensity strength training ( 80 % of maximum ) to an outpatient cardiac rehabilitation program would be a safe and effective means of improving muscle strength and body composition . METHODS Thirty-eight cardiac patient volunteers ( 29 men and 9 women ) were r and omized  to either high-intensity strength training or flexibility training added concurrently to a 12-week outpatient cardiac rehabilitation aerobic exercise program .  Muscle strength , local muscle endurance , joint flexibility , maximum treadmill tolerance time , and body composition were measured before and after completion of the training . RESULTS The strength-trained patients ( n = 18 ) had greater increases in mean strength ( 90 + /- 19 % versus 9 + /- 4 % , P < 0.0001 ) and local muscle endurance ( 20 versus 6 times , P < 0.0001 ) , and decreases in mean perceived exertion for lifting the initial one repetition maximum load ( 11 + /- 1 versus 15 + /- 1 , P < 0.0001 ) when compared with flexibility-trained patients ( n = 16 ) . The strength group lost more body fat ( 2.8 + /- 2.0 versus 1.3 + /- 2.0 kg , P < 0.01 ) , tended to gain more lean tissue ( 1.5 + /- 2.3 versus 0.5 + /- 1.2 kg , P < 0.10 ) , and had greater improvements in treadmill time ( 2.3 + /- 1.3 versus 1.2 + /- 1.0 minute , P < 0.02 ) than did the flexibility group . Improvements in joint flexibility were similar for each group . None of the subjects had evidence of cardiac ischemia or arrhythmia during the training sessions . CONCLUSIONS Medically supervised high-intensity strength training is well tolerated when added to the aerobic training of cardiac rehabilitation programs and allows patients to aggressively gain the strength and endurance they will need to complete daily living tasks at lower perceived efforts . Strength training also reduces cardiac risk factors by improving body composition and maximum treadmill exercise time
Serious adverse events were rare , and no serious events were reported to be directly related to the exercise programme .
This review provides evidence that PRT is an effective intervention for improving physical functioning in  older people , including improving strength and the performance of some simple and complex activities .
BACKGROUND Muscle weakness in old age is associated with physical function decline .
Progressive resistance strength training ( PRT ) exercises are design ed to increase strength .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of PRT on older people and identify adverse events .