Effects of muscle strength training in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome. Systematic review

During menopause, the risk of developing metabolic syndrome increases exponentially because of hormonal changes and old age. The aim is to perform a systematic review of randomized clinical trials to the effects of muscle strength training on the different parameters of the metabolic syndrome in postmenopausal women. A systematic review of the literature was performed in Pubmed, ScienDirect and SportDiscus using the words: Resistance training and metabolic syndrome or strength training and menopause, giving a result of 530 articles and selecting 9 of them that met the established criteria. All studies were performed in postmenopausal women, implementing muscle strength training with control group, evaluation of some component of metabolic syndrome, and with stated intensity. The studies were then evaluated using the PEDro scale. The results show that muscle strength training has been shown to have positive effects on the postmenopausal population, increasing muscle mass, improving glycemic control, regulating blood lipids, blood pressure and above all the overall metabolic syndrome score, being a safe strategy to implement in this population. According to this review, the parameters for prescribing the intensity of muscle strength exercise have not yet been determined.