Dance-Based Exercise Versus Clinical Pilates in Women With Overweight or Obesity

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Dance-Based Exercise Program: A supervised, low-impact dance-based exercise program tailored specifically for women with overweight and obesity. To minimize joint loading, the program strictly avoids high-impact movements such as jumping, running, sudden direction changes, and rapid pivoting. The sessions are designed and conducted in a group format by an experienced physical therapist. The program is structured for 10 weeks, 2 sessions per week, with each session lasting 45-60 minutes. Each session consists of: 1. Warm-up (8-10 minutes): Rhythmic breathing, joint mobilization, and postural awareness. 2. Main Dance Section (30-40 minutes): Low-impact, structured choreographies involving rhythmic stepping, weight shifting, multi-directional steps, controlled trunk movements, and upper extremity coordination. 3. Cool-down (8-10 minutes): Low-intensity stretching and relaxation. Progression is systematically advanced based on participant tolerance by increasing movement duration, choreography complexity, and tempo.

Clinical Pilates Program: A supervised, mat-based clinical Pilates program focusing on core stabilization, postural control, and muscle strength. Conducted in a group format by a physical therapist for 10 weeks (2 sessions/week, 45-60 minutes/session). Each session consists of: 1. Warm-up (8-10 mins): Breathing and postural awareness. 2. Main Section (30-40 mins): Mat exercises targeting core and extremity control. 3. Cool-down (8-10 mins): Stretching and relaxation. Progression is advanced based on participant tolerance by modifying exercise difficulty, repetitions, and introducing auxiliary equipment when required. Target intensity is kept at light-to-moderate and monitored using Borg RPE scores.

Study summary

Purpose of the Study:

Regular physical activity is key in managing overweight and obesity, but keeping up with a program can be challenging. The main purpose of this study is to compare how well women with overweight or obesity stick to (adhere to) a 10-week dance-based exercise program versus a clinical Pilates program. The study also aims to explore how enjoyable, acceptable, and tolerable both programs are, and how they affect participants' quality of life, physical activity levels, body measurements, and physical performance.

What the Study Involves:

Female volunteers aged 18 to 60 with a body mass index (BMI) between 25 and 35 kg/m² will be randomly assigned to one of two groups:

1. Dance-Based Exercise Group: Participants will join group dance sessions designed with low-impact, rhythmic movements to avoid joint strain.
2. Clinical Pilates Group: Participants will join group Pilates sessions on mats, focusing on core stability, posture, breathing, and muscle control.

Both programs will run for 10 weeks, with face-to-face sessions held twice a week for about 45 to 60 minutes under the supervision of a physiotherapist. Participants will be evaluated before starting the exercise programs and immediately after completing the 10-week intervention.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Exercise Adherence Rate — Up to 10 weeks (evaluated at the end of the intervention period)
  The percentage of planned exercise sessions attended by each participant among those who attend at least one session of the assigned exercise program. It is calculated using the formula: (Number of sessions attended / 20 planned sessions) × 100.

Trial sites (1)

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