The effect of aquatic exercise and diet program on physical fitness components and quality of life in obese women

Aquatic exercises are a suitable exercise method for obese individuals in terms of reducing the risk of injury and making it easier for obese and overweight people to exercise compared to land exercises, as the body cools effectively and increases the return rate of blood to the heart during exertion. The purpose of this research; To examine the effects of aquatic exercise and diet program on physical fitness components and quality of life in obese women. Obese women (n:28) living in the Çukurova district of Adana province and diagnosed with obesity were included in the study.The mean body mass index (BMI) of the study group (SG) was 34.49±3.39 (kg/m²), 33.55±2.58 (kg/m²) of the control group (CG); height; SG 160.57±6.53 (cm) CG 161.00±4.22 (cm), SG body weight 89.00 (kg)±8.46 (kg), CG 87.21±8.00 (kg). Aquatic exercise program and diet program were applied to the study group 3 days a week for 10 weeks, and only diet program was applied to the control group. After collecting demographic information, measurements of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA), obese-specific quality of life scale, balance test, sit-up test, flexibility test, wall squat test, and plank test were performed. The normal distribution of the data was evaluated with the Shapiro-Wilk test and it was seen that the results did not show normal distribution. Data analysis was performed with the Mann-Whitney U test regarding the difference scores between the groups. Wilcoxon test was used for the pre-post test analysis of the study and control groups. As a result of the study, the obese-specific quality of life scale (p=003) according to the difference scores was found in favor of CG. BMI (p=001), balance test (p=004), plank test (p=.031), DEXA fat (g); left arm, right-left leg, subtotal and total (p<0.05), DEXA total mass; subtotal, head and total variables (p<0.05), DEXA % fat variables; left arm, trunk, right-left leg, subtotal and total variables (p<0.05)a significant difference was found in favor of SG. It was concluded that the aquatic exercise and diet program was a positive method on physical fitness parameters in obese women, and decreases in BMI, adipose tissue and total mass were also a more effective method for obesity than diet program alone. Keywords: Aquatic, Diet, Exercise, Women, Obesity.