Physical activity reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), the leading cause of death in the US and globally. However, while we know a great deal about how much aerobic exercise (e.g., jogging) to prescribe to reduce CVD risk, we know far less about how much resistance exercise (e.g., weightlifting) to prescribe.
PARC Director Duck-chul Lee and his research team are currently conducting the DoReps project, five-year, $3.5-million exercise clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). DoReps will add important knowledge by testing the effects of different doses of resistance exercise on CVD risk factors among 240 adults with overweight or obesity. This project will further explore possible biologic mechanisms linking resistance exercise to CVD risk and identify which dose(s) of resistance exercise is (are) associated with best compliance in a free-living environment.
Participate in the Study
DoReps is currently recruiting study participants who are:
- Aged ≥40 years
- Overweight or obese (body mass index 25-43 kg/m2)
- Inactive (<150 min per week of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise such as brisk walking and <2 times per week of resistance exercise over the last 6 months)
Participants will receive:
- A free 1-year personalized exercise program at the Physical Activity Research Center (PARC)
- A maximum $300 incentive for participation
- Free comprehensive health screening including blood lipids profile, cardiac function, body composition, bone health by DXA scan, and more.
DoReps specifically encourages people from diverse backgrounds to participate so that we can help prevent health disparities in clinical research and increase the generalizability of our results on a national level.
If you are interested, please contact the DoReps research team at doreps@pitt.edu or (412) 383-4021.