Heat & Aerobic Training (HEAT) Study
Condition: Pre-hypertension
MeSH terms: Hypertension; Prehypertension
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This study is intended for inactive, middle-aged adults with untreated pre-hypertension who
      live in the Urbana-Champaign area, who are interested in a comprehensive program designed to
      enhance physical activity & reduce blood pressure. All participants will be asked to engage
      in a program developed in accordance with American Heart Association's recommendations.
      Specifically, the program will encourage and support lifestyle behavior changes such as
      quitting smoking, eating heart-healthy food, and reducing excessive alcohol, in addition to
      weekly exercise. The exercise program will involve a 14-week aerobic training program (3
      weekly sessions, scheduled at study participants' convenience), and 2 pre- and 2-post-testing
      sessions.
    

Detailed description: 
      Exercise has been associated with enhanced cognitive functioning. Several physiological
      mechanisms of change have been proposed, including increased blood-flow, vascular
      functioning, and neurological changes. Similar outcomes are also associated with partial-body
      and full-body heat therapy (e.g. steam-room or dry-sauna). The purpose of this study is to
      compare full-body HEAT treatments combined with exercise in a 14-week program to an
      exercise-only condition. The exercise program will involve moderate-intensity aerobic
      exercise training. All participants will also be asked to adhere to the American Heart
      Association's guidelines for reducing and controlling blood pressure, including increasing
      physical activity (at least 50 minutes, 3 times/week as part of our supervised training
      sessions), stopping smoking altogether, eating healthier (limiting sodium, eating fruit,
      veggies, low-fat dairy and lean protein, and reducing saturated fat and total fat), drinking
      less alcohol (1-2 drinks a day max) and achieving and maintaining a healthy bodyweight
      (striving for a body mass index between 18 and 25).

      It is hypothesized that heat treatments combined with exercise will enhance the body's
      adaptive responses to exercise which in turn, should reduce blood pressure & blood flow, and
      improve cognitive functioning and related psychosocial outcomes (including anxiety and
      mindfulness). A two-armed (parallel groups design) randomized controlled trial involving heat
      and aerobic training (HEAT) will be compared with an exercise only (ExOnly) control
      condition. Therefore, the HEAT groups will receive 42 exercise classes each followed by a
      heat treatment involving 11-20 minutes of steam-room therapy. Post-exercise time will be
      matched in the control condition by having participants sit in the lobby after each session.
      The exercise interventions and assessments will be conducted by trained exercise staff. The
      participants will be assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Additionally, brief
      assessments will be administered at each session (pre and post) and logs will be administered
      to participants on a weekly basis. Assessments will include (a) physical activity & biometric
      monitoring, (b) performance on neurocognitive tests, (c) endothelial function, (d) a battery
      of psychosocial questionnaires, and (e) functional performance measures.
    

Intervention name(s): Heat & Aerobic Training (HEAT); Exercise Only
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): Participants receive 42 supervised 50-minute, moderately intensive (50-75% max HR) aerobic exercise sessions (3 times per week), followed by 11-20 minutes of post-exercise steam-room therapy. Participants are encouraged to exercise on their own (e.g., 1-2 days of aerobic and/or resistance training) but to refrain from unsupervised steam-room sessions or any other form of heat therapy.; Participants receive 42 supervised 50-minute, moderately intensive (50-75% max HR) aerobic exercise sessions (3 times per week), followed by 11-20 minutes of post-exercise sitting in the lobby of the fitness facility. Participants are encouraged to exercise on their own (e.g., 1-2 days of aerobic and/or resistance training) but to refrain from unsupervised steam-room sessions or any other form of heat therapy.
Other intervention name(s): STEAM; ExOnly
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Investigator)
Primary purpose: Treatment
Keywords: heat therapy; steam-room; aerobic exercise; hypertension; multiple behavior change; lifestyle modification