Overweight postmenopausal women did moderate or vigorous treadmill walking for 20 weeks during calorie restriction; both exercise groups preserved lean mass but showed no extra loss of abdominal fat versus diet alone.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 95 women · 20 weeks · 2009PostmenopausalCited 128 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women lost weight over 16 weeks via diet or mainly exercise, and exercise produced greater fat loss, preserved lean mass, and some differences in sex hormones compared to diet.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 243 women · 16 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 66 timesPubMed
Obese postmenopausal women aged 55 to 75 did 3 months of resistance training, caloric restriction, both or neither, and resistance training alone improved physical capacity scores more than the other groups.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 48 women · 12 weeks · 2009PostmenopausalCited 70 timesPubMed
92 postmenopausal women with obesity did diet, physical-cognitive exercise, or both for 3 months, and exercise groups showed improved memory, BDNF, insulin and body fat versus controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 92 women · 12 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 42 timesPubMed
A review of 15 intervention studies found that physical activity combined with calorie-restricted diets in postmenopausal women generally reduced body weight, fat mass and waist size and improved blood sugar and fitness.
Reported an improvementSystematic review · 2010PostmenopausalCited 9 timesPubMed
Obese, sedentary postmenopausal women underwent a 6-month lifestyle change program with increased physical activity and reported reduced weight, fat mass, blood pressure, and cholesterol.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 44 women · 26 weeks · 2004PostmenopausalCited 48 timesPubMed
Over 14 weeks, postmenopausal women doing circuit resistance training with energy-restricted diets and calcium or vitamin D supplements showed improved strength, aerobic capacity and varying body composition changes by diet and supplement combination.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 128 women · 14 weeks · 2020PostmenopausalCited 22 timesPubMed
Overweight middle-aged women doing aerobic training three times weekly for 3 months, with or without daily orange juice, both lost fat and improved anaerobic threshold, with juice linked to better LDL and HDL changes.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 26 women · 12 weeks · 2010Midlife womenCited 37 timesPubMed
In 38 dynapenic-obese postmenopausal women over 12 weeks, resistance training improved physical capacity while caloric restriction with or without resistance training improved body composition and metabolic markers.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 38 women · 12 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 26 timesPubMed
In sedentary postmenopausal women, 8 weeks of exercise training improved cardiorespiratory capacity and vascular function, with slightly greater improvement when combined with a Mediterranean diet.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 15 women · 8 weeks · 2014PostmenopausalCited 27 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women in a 48-month lifestyle programme who increased activity and lost weight showed faster 400-meter walk times than those who did not.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 508 women · 192 weeks · 2011PostmenopausalCited 13 timesPubMed
In 35 BRCA-positive breast cancer survivors after surgical menopause, a 12 month web-based lifestyle program maintained cardiovascular fitness and bone area and reduced body fat versus control.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 35 women · 52 weeks · 2017OtherCited 18 timesPubMed
Obese postmenopausal women on calorie restriction with or without aerobic exercise for 20 weeks had similar reductions in pericardial fat regardless of exercise addition.
Direction not statedRandomised trial · 32 women · 20 weeks · 2011PostmenopausalCited 21 timesPubMed
Thirty postmenopausal women did an 8 week HIIT program combined with either intermittent fasting or a low calorie diet, and both groups improved flexibility and VO2 max.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 30 women · 8 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 8 timesPubMed
In postmenopausal women, a low-fat dietary intervention that also increased physical activity reduced age-related decline in physical functioning over 12 years.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 48,835 women · 624 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women who lost weight with or without aerobic exercise over 6 months and were followed for a year showed similar bone density loss in both groups.
Mixed resultsRandomised trial · 52 weeks · 2021PostmenopausalCited 13 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women did a 6-month weight loss program with higher-protein diet with or without supervised multicomponent exercise; exercise groups preserved strength and physical function better than diet alone.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 72 women · 26 weeks · 2021PostmenopausalCited 4 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women added walking to a weight loss program and showed a 2% increase in femoral neck bone density versus weight loss alone, linked to reduced inflammatory markers.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 86 women · 2009PostmenopausalCited 59 timesPubMed
Mildly obese middle-aged women did 12 weeks of aerobic exercise with food restriction and lost body fat while resting metabolic rate per unit of lean mass increased.
Direction not statedRandomised trial · 17 women · 12 weeks · 1994Midlife womenCited 10 timesPubMed
In 101 postmenopausal women with obesity, severe short-term energy restriction led to greater physical activity levels at 6 months than moderate restriction, though differences were weight-dependent.
Direction not statedRandomised trial · 101 women · 156 weeks · 2022PostmenopausalCited 3 timesPubMed
Over 12 weeks, postmenopausal women doing Nordic walking with high protein intake and time-restricted eating showed the largest gains in handgrip strength and physical performance.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 96 women · 12 weeks · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed
In 60 overweight postmenopausal women, 6 months of weight loss plus aerobic exercise improved fitness and reduced android fat distribution more than weight loss alone, which did not change fitness.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 60 women · 24 weeks · 2017PostmenopausalCited 10 timesPubMed
Obese middle-aged women did a 12-week diet and aerobic program with or without acceleration training; adding acceleration training improved grip strength, balance and flexibility beyond diet and aerobic exercise alone.
Direction not statedControlled trial · 28 women · 12 weeks · 2014Midlife womenCited 10 timesPubMed
In 40 postmenopausal women, 24 weeks of walking and strength training combined with dieting increased muscle strength, while bone density and VO2max did not change.
No difference foundControlled trial · 40 women · 24 weeks · 1997PostmenopausalCited 14 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women did 6 months of weight loss with or without aerobic exercise; both lost similar weight, but only the exercise group improved fitness and avoided a drop in daily activity.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 79 women · 26 weeks · 2014PostmenopausalCited 6 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal breast cancer survivors with obesity in a 24 week diet and exercise program lost an average of 3.8 kilograms and reduced body fat percentage and waist circumference.
Direction not statedBefore-and-after study · 14 women · 24 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 65 timesPubMed
Forty obese, sedentary postmenopausal women walked three days a week with calorie restriction, and greater gains in aerobic fitness were linked to greater reductions in visceral fat.
Reported an improvementBefore-and-after study · 40 women · 2001PostmenopausalCited 26 timesPubMed
Seven obese postmenopausal women completed a 12 week diet and exercise program and showed reduced body fat, higher fitness, and lower serum and breast ductal estradiol levels.
Reported an improvementBefore-and-after study · 7 women · 12 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 11 timesPubMed
Obese middle-aged women were followed one year after an 18 week jogging and diet program; researchers reported fitness and cholesterol ratio gains were maintained with continued self-directed training.
Reported an improvementBefore-and-after study · 13 women · 52 weeks · 1991Midlife womenCited 2 timesPubMed