Fifty-six elderly individuals diagnosed with coronary artery disease participated in the study and were divided into four groups: an aerobic exercise group, a resistance exercise group, a combined (aerobic + resistance) exercise group and a control group. The three exercise groups participated in 8 months of exercise training. Before, at 4 and at 8 months of the training period as well as at 1, 2 and 3 months after training cessation, muscle strength was measured and blood samples were collected. The resistance exercise caused significant increases mainly in muscle strength whereas aerobic exercise caused favourable effects mostly on lipid and apolipoprotein profiles. On the other hand, combined exercise caused significant favourable effects on both physiological (i.e. muscle strength) and biochemical (i.e. lipid and apolipoprotein profile and inflammation status) parameters, while the return to baseline values during the detraining period was slower compared to the other exercise modalities.

The present study aimed to investigate whether acute L-citrulline supplementation would affect inspiratory muscle oxygenation and respiratory performance. Twelve healthy males received 6 g of L-citrulline or placebo in a double-blind crossover design. Pulmonary function (i.e., forced expired volume in 1 s, forced vital capacity and their ratio), maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), fractional exhaled nitric oxide (NO^•), and sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation were measured at baseline, one hour post supplementation, and after an incremental resistive breathing protocol to task failure of the respiratory muscles. The resistive breathing task consisted of 30 inspirations at 70% and 80% of MIP followed by continuous inspirations at 90% of MIP until task failure. Sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation was assessed using near-infrared spectroscopy. One-hour post-L-citrulline supplementation, exhaled NO^• was significantly increased (19.2%; p < 0.05), and this increase was preserved until the end of the resistive breathing (16.4%; p < 0.05). In contrast, no difference was observed in the placebo condition. Pulmonary function and MIP were not affected by the L-citrulline supplementation. During resistive breathing, sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation was significantly reduced, with no difference noted between the two supplementation conditions. In conclusion, a single ingestion of 6 g L-citrulline increased NO^• bioavailability but not the respiratory performance and inspiratory muscle oxygenation.

Whole-body vibration (WBV) exercise is an alternative, popular and easy exercise that can be followed by general public. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of acute and chronic WBV exercise on health-related parameters. Twenty-eight women were allocated into a control group (n=11, mean ±SEM: age, 43.5 ±1.5 yr; body mass, 66.1 ±3.1 kg; height, 160.6 ±1.5 cm) and a vibration group (n=17, mean ±SEM: age, 44.0 ±1.0 yr; body mass, 67.1 ±2.2 kg; height, 162.5 ±1.5 cm). After baseline assessments, participants of the experimental group performed WBV training 3 times/week for 8 weeks. Before and after the chronic WBV exercise, the participants of the vibration group performed one session of acute WBV exercise. Blood chemistry measurements (hematology, creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, C-reactive protein, glucose, insulin, triacylglycerols, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein A1, apolipoprotein B and lipoprotein, thiobarbituric-acid reactive substances, protein carbonyls, total antioxidant capacity, uric acid, albumin and bilirubin) were assessed pre-exercise and post-exercise at the first and eighth week of WBV exercise in both control and vibration groups. The results failed to support any effect of both acute and chronic WBV exercise on biochemical health-related parameters. However, it seems that WBV exercise is a safe way of training without a negative impact on muscle and liver functionality.

Hypertension and arterial stiffness are significant factors contributing to cardiovascular disease. L-citrulline, a nitric oxide precursor, has been proposed as a nutritional, non-pharmacological blood pressure-lowering intervention. This study aimed to investigate the impact of L-citrulline on central and peripheral blood pressure, pulse wave reflection, and central arterial stiffness at rest and during an isometric knee extension exercise protocol. Twelve older males received 6 g of L-citrulline or a placebo for six days using a double-blind crossover design. Blood hemodynamics parameters (i.e., aortic and brachial systolic and diastolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, pulse pressure, heart rate), pulse wave reflection (i.e., augmented pressure, augmentation index, forward/backward wave pressure), and arterial stiffness (i.e., carotid–femoral pulse wave velocity) were measured at baseline, post-supplementation, and during isometric exercise. No significant effects of L-citrulline supplementation were observed at rest or during exercise on blood pressure, pulse wave reflection, or arterial stiffness. Both central and peripheral blood pressure were increased during the exercise, which is consistent with isometric contractions. The results of the present study do not support any blood pressure-lowering effect of short-term L-citrulline at rest or during low-intensity isometric exercise compared to the pre-exercise values in older males.

In sports nutrition, nitric oxide (NO^•) precursors such as L-citrulline are widely used to enhance NO^• bioavailability, which is considered an ergogenic aid. Our study aimed to examine the effect of short-term L-citrulline supplementation on respiratory muscles’ performance, fatigue, and oxygenation in older adults. Fourteen healthy older males took 6 g of L-citrulline or a placebo for seven days in a double-blind crossover design. Pulmonary function via spirometry (i.e., forced expired volume in 1 s (FEV₁), forced vital capacity (FVC), and their ratio)), fractional exhaled nitric oxide (NO^•), maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), rate of perceived exertion, and sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation (i.e., oxyhemoglobin (Δ[O₂Hb]) and de-oxyhemoglobin (Δ[HHb]), total hemoglobin concentration (Δ[tHb]), and tissue saturation index (TSI%)) were evaluated at baseline, after seven days of L-citrulline supplementation, and after incremental resistive breathing to task failure of the respiratory muscles. The exhaled NO^• value was only significantly increased after the supplementation (26% p < 0.001) in the L-citrulline condition. Pulmonary function, MIP, rate of perceived exertion, and sternocleidomastoid muscle oxygenation were not affected by the L-citrulline supplementation. In the present study, although short-term L-citrulline supplementation increased exhaled NO^•, no ergogenic aids were found on the examined parameters at rest and after resistive breathing to task failure in older adults.