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Review
. 2024 Mar 1;326(3):H772-H785.
doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00625.2023. Epub 2024 Jan 12.

Cerebrovascular adaptations to habitual resistance exercise with aging

Affiliations
Review

Cerebrovascular adaptations to habitual resistance exercise with aging

Elric Y Allison et al. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. .

Abstract

Resistance training (RT) is associated with improved metabolism, bone density, muscular strength, and lower risk of osteoporosis, sarcopenia, and cardiovascular disease. Although RT imparts many physiological benefits, cerebrovascular adaptations to chronic RT are not well defined. Participation in RT is associated with greater resting peripheral arterial diameters, improved endothelial function, and general cardiovascular health, whereas simultaneously linked to reductions in central arterial compliance. Rapid blood pressure fluctuations during resistance exercise, combined with reduced arterial compliance, could lead to cerebral microvasculature damage and subsequent cerebral hypoperfusion. Reductions in cerebral blood flow (CBF) accompany normal aging, where chronic reductions in CBF are associated with changes in brain structure and function, and increased risk of neurodegeneration. It remains unclear whether reductions in arterial compliance with RT relate to subclinical cerebrovascular pathology, or if such adaptations require interpretation in the context of RT specifically. The purpose of this narrative review is to synthesize literature pertaining to cerebrovascular adaptations to RT at different stages of the life span. This review also aims to identify gaps in the current understanding of the long-term impacts of RT on cerebral hemodynamics and provide a mechanistic rationale for these adaptations as they relate to aging, cerebral vasculature, and overall brain health.

Keywords: blood pressure fluctuations; cerebral blood flow; resistance exercise; resistance training.

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Conflict of interest statement

No conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise, are declared by the authors.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Summary schematic of the effects of resistance training (RT) in young healthy adults (A) and older adults (B). Schematic summarizes that findings from literature are mixed as it relates to RT-induced changes in arterial structure (stiffness) and function (compliance). In older adults, where increases in arterial stiffness and decreases in arterial compliance occur with normal aging, there is no evidence suggesting that RT is associated with deleterious effects on the vasculature. Furthermore, RT in older adults is associated with several positive benefits as it relates to cerebrovascular and overall brain health, including improved cerebral blood flow (CBF), cognitive function, and brain structure. Elements of this figure were created with a licensed version of Biorender.com.

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