The Effects of 8 Weeks Post Exercise Hot Water Immersion on Vascular and Cardiometabolic Health in Physically Inactive Middle-aged Adults
Condition: Physical Inactivity; Aging
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This research project aims to determine whether post exercise hot water immersion can improve
      vascular and cardiometabolic health to a greater extent than post exercise thermoneutral
      water immersion in healthy middle-aged adults.

      The study will take place over an 8 week period where participants will do a combination of
      aerobic exercise and water immersion 3 times per week. The study will be a randomised
      controlled trial comparing 8-weeks of post exercise hot water immersion (EX+HWI) to post
      exercise thermoneutral water immersion (EX+TNWI).
    

Detailed description: 
      The exercise component of each intervention will be 30 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic
      exercise consisting of 10 minutes cycling, jogging and rowing, three times per week. Exercise
      intensity will be maintained at a heart rate equivalent of 65% of maximal heart rate. All
      exercise sessions will take the form of supervised group exercise sessions (<4 participants)
      at Coventry University. After 30 minutes of exercise, participants will either complete 30
      minutes of whole-body hot water immersion at 40°C or thermoneutral immersion at 34°C in the
      control condition (similar protocols are known to be well tolerated in older adults) (Akerman
      et al. 2019; Brunt et al. 2016). In order to ensure progression, exercise intensity will be
      increase to 75% of maximal heart rate according to the maximal exercise test at 4 weeks.

      Assessment sessions will take place before session 1 and >48hrs after session 12 and 24.
      Prior to arriving at the lab participants will complete an overnight fast. Participants will
      also refrain from consuming alcoholic and caffeinated beverages, nitrate high sources and any
      form of strenuous exercise in the 24hr time period prior to testing. All testing laboratory
      visits will be completed in the morning and where possible at the same time of day to help
      standardise for any potential variations that the circadian rhythm may have on the measured
      variables.

      Assessments will be completed over two days. The outcome measures for this study comprise a
      range of physiological psychological measures which are known to inform the risk of
      cardiovascular disease. These measures fall into the following broad categories 1) vascular
      health; 2) cardiometabolic and inflammatory blood markers; 3) maximal exercise test and 4)
      cardiovascular disease risk prediction. In addition, measures of intervention acceptability
      and basic physiological heat acclimation measures will also be assessed.
    

Intervention name(s): Aerobic exercise + hot water immersion; Aerobic exercise + thermoneutral water immersion
Intervention type(s): Other; Other
Intervention description(s): Light to moderate intensity aerobic exercise for 30 minutes, followed by 30 minutes of hot water immersion at 40°C.; Light to moderate intensity aerobic exercise for 30 minutes, followed by 30 minutes of thermoneutral water immersion at 34°C.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Triple (Participant, Care Provider, Investigator)
Primary purpose: Treatment