Cardiorespiratory Fitness as a Clinically Relevant Risk Factor

The purpose of this dissertation was to provide evidence in support of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) as a clinically relevant tool to manage lifestyle-based disease. The objective of Study 1 was to determine whether there is a difference in all-cause mortality risk between CRF achieved through physical activity (PA) (active; CRF-A) compared to the same CRF achieved without (inactive; CRF-I). The main finding of this study was that while both CRF-A and CRF-I were associated with lower all-cause mortality risk, there was no difference in mortality risk between CRF-A and CRF-I. That those with CRF-A achieved the same risk reduction as those with CRF-I underscores the unique importance of PA as the primary determinant of CRF. The objective of Study 2 was to determine whether the association between CRF and long-term outcomes is explained by changes in cardiometabolic risk (CMR) by exploring whether exercise-induced improvement in CRF and/or waist circumference (WC) is associated with change in CMR. The main finding of this study was that exercise-induced change in CRF was not associated with change in CMR, whereas the greater the exercise-induced change in WC, the greater the change in CMR. The objective of Study 3 was to determine whether submaximal CRF (sCRF) is inversely associated with all-cause mortality risk in adult men and women. The main finding of this study was that adults who maintained of improved sCRF were less likely to die from all causes during follow-up than were adults whose sCRF decreased. This test provides a unique reflection of cardiovascular health that is a pragmatic alternative to maximal CRF tests. The objective of Study 4 was to determine whether change in estimated CRF (eCRF) is associated with change in measured CRF independent of exercise amount and intensity over 24 weeks. The main finding of this study was that change in eCRF is associated with change in measured CRF over 24 weeks independent of exercise amount but not intensity. In addition, systematic variation was observed between eCRF and measured CRF, highlighting a principal limitation when using eCRF to follow exercise-induced change in measured CRF.

Department dc:contributor.department

Kinesiology and Health Studies

Author dc:creator

• de Lannoy, Louise

Advisor dc:contributor.supervisor

• Ross, Robert

• Cardiorespiratory Fitness
• Exercise
• Cardiometabolic Risk
• Physical Activity

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1974/27500

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:queensu.scholaris.ca:1974/27500