Dynamic and Isometric Strength Training in Older Adults With Hypertension (Dynamic and Is)

Effects of Dynamic Strength Training and Isometric Strength Training on Cardiovascular Health Indicators, Mental Health, and Neuromuscular Fitness in Older Adults With Hypertension: A Feasibility Study

This feasibility study aims to evaluate the effects of dynamic strength training and isometric strength training on cardiovascular health indicators, mental health, and neuromuscular fitness in older adults with hypertension. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of the two training modalities and will complete supervised exercise sessions throughout the intervention period. The study will provide preliminary evidence regarding the safety, acceptability, and potential impact of each training modality on health outcomes in this population.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Hypertension; Elderly (People Aged 65 or More)
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Dynamic Strength Training; Behavioral: Isometric Strength Training; Behavioral: No supervised intervention Control

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Adão Luis Monte L Monte, Ms; Phone Number: +55 11 94666 5213; Email: adaoluiz8@outlook.com
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Raphael M Ritti-Dias, PhD; Phone Number: +5519999406878; Email: raphaelritti@gmail.com

Study Locations

• Brazil
  • São Paulo
    • São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil, 01525-000
      • Recruiting
      • Uninove

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion criteria:

• Diagnosis of arterial hypertension and currently taking antihypertensive medication
• Age 60 years or older
• Resting blood pressure below 160/95 mmHg
• No high cardiovascular risk according to the American College of Sports Medicine criteria (for participants with type 2 diabetes, glycemic control with fasting glucose <100 mg/dL and postprandial glucose <140 mg/dL)
• Not participating in a structured exercise program for more than three months
• No cognitive or functional limitations that prevent participation in the exercise program

Exclusion Criteria

• Presence of acute illnesses, such as influenza, sinusitis, gastroenteritis, urinary tract infection, fever, inflammatory processes, or any clinical condition requiring rest or that may compromise safety during assessments or training.
• Decompensated clinical conditions, including: Blood pressure spikes, Chest pain, Uncontrolled arrhythmias, Shortness of breath at rest, Asthma exacerbations, Decompensated diabetes mellitus, characterized by Persistently elevated blood glucose levels (fasting glucose > 180 mg/dL or postprandial glucose > 250 mg/dL)
• Irregular use of medication
• Any unstable clinical condition or condition that represents additional risk for the practice of physical exercise.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Dynamic Strength Training; The subjects randomized to this group will perform two supervised dynamic strength training sessions per week for 6 weeks, each session lasting approximately 30 minutes.	Behavioral: Dynamic Strength Training; The experimental group will perform dynamic strength exercises targeting major muscle groups, progressing in intensity and volume over the 6 weeks. Exercises include 8 major muscle group movements, initially 2 sets of 15 repetitions (Borg 4-6), progressing to 3 sets of 10 repetitions (Borg 5-7) from week 5. Participants will also be advised to perform non-supervised walking 3-5 times per week for ~30 minutes at moderate intensity.
Experimental: Isometric Strength Training; The subjects randomized to this group will perform two supervised isometric strength training sessions per week for 6 weeks, each session lasting approximately 30 minutes.	Behavioral: Isometric Strength Training; The experimental group will perform isometric strength exercises targeting major muscle groups, progressing in intensity and volume over the 6 weeks. Exercises include 8 major muscle group contractions, initially 2 sets of 60 seconds (Borg 4-6), progressing to 3 sets of 40 seconds (Borg 5-7) from week 5. Participants will also be advised to perform non-supervised walking 3-5 times per week for ~30 minutes at moderate intensity.
Other: Control; No supervised training will be provided. Participants in this group will not receive any exercise intervention during the 6-week study period, but they will be stimulated to be active.	Behavioral: No supervised intervention Control; This group serves as a control and will not perform any structured exercise program.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Recruitment rate	Proportion of enrolled participants relative to the total number of eligible individuals contacted. Reported as a percentage.	Baseline and 6 weeks
Adherence to training sessions	Percentage of completed training sessions relative to the total number of planned sessions over the 6-week intervention period.	During 6 weeks
Retention rate	Proportion of participants who complete the full 6-week intervention	During 6 weeks
Fidelity to exercise protocol	Percentage of exercises performed according to the prescribed protocol parameters, including load, repetitions, and time under tension.	Duiring 6 weeks
Acceptability of the intervention	Acceptability assessed through a structured satisfaction questionnaire, scored from 0 to 10, administered at the end of the 6-week intervention	During 6 weeks
Occurrence of adverse events	Number of intervention-related adverse events, classified as mild, moderate, or severe	During 6 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from baseline in Clinical resting blood pressure at 6 weeks	Systolic and diastolic blood pressure measured with automatic device (HEM-742, Omron Healthcare, Japan) in seated position, average of last two of three readings, in millimeters of mercury.	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Home blood pressure monitoring at 6 weeks	Seven-day home monitoring with automatic device (Omron Healthcare, Japan), two readings morning and evening in duplicate; average of valid readings, in millimeters of mercury	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Flow-mediated dilation at 6 weeks	Brachial and femoral artery vasodilation assessed by ultrasonography with spectral Doppler (Cannon Xario, Japan); calculated as percentage change from baseline	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Standard deviation of normal R-R intervals at 6 weeks	Standard deviation of normal R-R intervals will be assessed using the Polar V800 heart rate monitor (Polar Electro, Finland) and expressed in milliseconds (ms).	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Arterial stiffness at 6 weeks	Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity measured by applanation tonometry (SphygmoCor, AtCor Medical, Australia), calculated as distance/time in meters per second	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Depressive symptoms at 6 weeks	Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15), 15 items, scored 0-15, higher score = worse symptoms	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Anxiety symptoms at 6 weeks	Generalized Anxiety Disorder questionnaire (GAD-7), 7 items, scored 0-21, higher score = worse symptoms	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Six-Minute Walk Test distance at 6 weeks	Distance walked in meters during the six-minute walk test performed in a 30-meter corridor.	Baseline and 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Root mean square of successive differences between R-R intervals at 6 weeks	Root mean square of successive differences between R-R intervals will be measured using the Polar V800 heart rate monitor (Polar Electro, Finland) and expressed in milliseconds (ms).	Baseline to 6 weeks
Change from baseline in Proportion of successive R-R intervals differing by more than 50 milliseconds at 6 weeks	Proportion of successive R-R intervals differing by more than 50 milliseconds will be measured using the Polar V800 heart rate monitor (Polar Electro, Finland) and expressed in milliseconds (ms).	Baseline to 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in Low-frequency spectral power at 6 weeks	Low-frequency spectral power will be assessed using the Polar V800 (Polar Electro, Finland) and expressed in ms².	Baseline to 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in high-frequency power at 6 weeks	high-frequency power High-frequency component measured with Polar V800 (Polar Electro, Finland), expressed in ms².	Baseline to 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in Low-frequency to high-frequency ratio at 6 weeks	Low-frequency to high-frequency ratio measured with Polar V800 (Polar Electro, Finland).	Baseline to 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in Timed Up and Go Time at 6 weeks	time in seconds to stand from a chair, walk 3 meters, turn, return, and sit down.	Baseline and 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in 30-second Chair stand repetitions at 6 weeks	number of full stands from a seated position completed in 30seconds.	Baseline and 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in handgrip strength at 6 weeks	maximum voluntary isometric handgrip strength measured using handheld dynamometer instrutherm DM-90 (Brazil), expressed in kilogram-force (kgf).	Baseline and 6 weeks.
Change from baseline in isometric knee extensor strength at 6 weeks	Maximum isometric knee extensor strength measured at 90º knee angle using horizontal leg press, expressed in kilogram-force (kgf).	Baseline and 6 weeks.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Raphael Mendes Ritti Dias
• Investigators: Study Chair: Raphael M Ritti-Dias, PhD, University of Nove de Julho

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): March 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): June 30, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 31, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 16, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 26, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): March 4, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 1, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 27, 2026
• Last Verified: April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Hypertension; blood pressure; old age; Resistance training; Strength training; Cardiovascular health
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Vascular Diseases; Cardiovascular Diseases; Hypertension
• Other Study ID Numbers: DYNISO-HT

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: Data will be anonymized and shared after the completion of the study and publication of the main results
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: Data will be shared adter the publication of the main trial
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Will be avaliable in open repositories
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No