Evaluating the effect of two types of long-term exercise in land and water on plasma β-endorphin level in pregnant women

By creating specific physical and mental changes in women's lives, pregnancy not only affects their perceptions of quality of life, but also makes it difficult for them to perform certain movements to carry out everyday activities. It is recommended for pregnant women to participate in regular and intensive physical activity programs, since they have been shown to be effective and safe during pregnancy. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of 8 weeks of aerobic exercise in land and water on plasma β-endorphin level in pregnant women. For this purpose, 36 pregnant women aged 24-30 years were randomly assigned to one of the three groups of control (A), exercise in land (B), or exercise in water (C) in their third or second pregnancy. After blood sampling to assess the level of β-endorphin, the exercise group performed aerobic exercises in water at 60-70% of maximum heart rate for 60 minutes, three sessions per week for 8 weeks. The exercise group performed aerobic exercises with similar intensity and duration out of water environment and at sports hall. The control group continued their normal life during this period. Plasma β-endorphin changes in all three groups showed that aerobic exercise increased plasma β-endorphin level significantly. Comparing the plasma β-endorphin levels between two groups of exercise in water and exercise in land showed that increase in the level of β-endorphin was significantly more in exercise in water group than that in two other groups.