The effect of eight weeks of high-intensity interval training and sleep regulation on resistance and sensitivity of insulin, body fat percentage, and reaction time in adolescent girls with sleep disorders

Sleep disorders increase many diseases and a decrease physiological function. This study aimed to compare the effect of the two methods of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and sleep regulation program and a combination of the two on insulin resistance and sensitivity, body fat percentage, and reaction time in adolescents with sleep disorders.

This is a single-blind and quasi-experimental study was conducted based on an applied research method. In total, 80 female students with sleep disorders (13-17 years old) were selected by the available sampling method and randomly divided in four groups (n=20). All subjects participated in the pre-test and post-test sessions for measurements two days before and after the research process, respectively. The participants in the HIIT and combined groups followed the RAST (Running-Based Anaerobic Sprint Test) program for 4 weeks, three sessions a week, and the sleep regulation and combined groups followed the sleep schedule for 4 weeks, according to the necessary recommendations. Data were analyzed using SPSS software (version 26) and running paired t-test, and ANCOVA. Moreover, a P-value of ≤0.05 was considered significant.

The findings showed that 4 weeks of combined intervention of HIIT+sleep regulation could lead to a significant improvement in all research variables, including glucose, insulin, insulin resistance and sensitivity, pancreatic beta cell function, body fat percentage, and reaction time of girls (P=0.001). In addition, the HIIT group, compared to the sleep regulation and control groups, caused a significant improvement in glucose, insulin resistance and sensitivity, pancreatic beta cell function, body fat percentage, sleep quality, and reaction time (P=0.001), except for insulin (P=0.428).

According to the obtained results, HIIT combined with sleep regulation can be a valuable intervention in treatment programs to improve physiologic problems reduce the costs of treatment for adolescent girls with sleep disorders and their families.