The improvement of the body weight and peak expiratory flow of people with overweight and obesity through the use of yoga

Abstract

The present investigation is of the quasi-experimental type of temporal series design interrupted with a group with repeated measures of pretest and posttest. The objective of the same was the evaluation of a Yoga training program on the effects on the Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF) and on overweight-obesity of female patients who attended the Mutual Aid Groups of the Secretary of Health in Manzanillo, Mexico. The intervention group consisted of 15 women with an average age of 46 years (±16) without chronic non-communicable diseases, the program was designed for 6 with two weekly sessions of 40 minutes each (80 min per week). The instruments used to verify the progress in the PEF and the BMI are: clinical history, portable flowmeters and a minimum protocol of weight and height Quetelet´s formula to determine the BMI, as well as an interview at the end of the intervention to know aspects about participation in the intervention. Among the main findings, there was a significant progress in Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF) after the intervention, the participants were able to make a deeper inhalation and a greater exhalation. The results show positive effects on the PEF after a 6-week program with specific yoga work to improve breathing, but not for BMI and changes in body weight.