Journal of Sport and Exercise Physiology

Journal of Sport and Exercise Physiology

The effect of high-intensity functional training on miR-637 and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in obese and overweight women

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Amir shakib 1
Mehdi Zarei 2
Hamid Reza Zolfi 3
1 Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
2 Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Neyshabur, Neyshabur, Iran
3 Department of Physical Education and Sport Science, National University of Skills (NUS), Tehran, Iran
10.48308/joeppa.2025.240785.1382
Abstract
Background and Purpose: Obesity has been a growing health problem worldwide and its prevalence is increasing in both developed and developing countries. Overweight and obesity are associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases. It has recently been reported that functional training is effective in reducing the percentage of fat in obese individuals and can be used as a potentially useful strategy to combat obesity and inflammation. Given the role of obesity and chronic inflammation in the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, and the importance of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) as a marker of cardiovascular risk, this study aimed to investigate the effect of high-intensity functional training on the expression of miR-637 and high-sensitivity Hs-CRP in obese and overweight women.
Materials and Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 20 overweight and obese women were randomly divided into two groups: high-intensity functional training (n = 9) and control (n = 11). Subjects in the training group performed high-intensity functional training 3 sessions per week for 8 weeks. The exercises were performed at an intensity of ≤ 7 on the CR10 rate of perceived exertion scale. Anthropometric measurements and blood samples were taken before and after 8 weeks, for measuring miR-637 and hs-CRP. Between- and within-group comparisons were made by using the analysis of covariance and the paired t-test, respectively.
Results: Data analysis showed that after eight weeks of high-intensity functional training, body weight, body mass index, and fat percentage were significantly (p<0.001) reduced in the experimental group compared to the control group. Between-group comparisons showed that after eight weeks of high-intensity functional training, miR-637 was significantly reduced in the experimental group compared to the control group (p<0.001). After eight weeks, no significant between-group differences were observed for Hs-CRP (p=0.097). However, within-group comparisons showed that Hs-CRP levels in the experimental group were significantly reduced (p=0.004).
Conclusion: Base on the findings of the present study it might be concluded that eight weeks of high-intensity functional training is effective in reducing weight and body fat percentage in overweight or obese women. These exercise modality may also be effective in improving the complications of overweight and obesity by reducing miR-637 and partially improving Hs-CRP.
 
Keywords
Adipokines
miRNA
Inflammation
Exercise training
Subjects
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  • Receive Date 22 July 2025
  • Revise Date 10 September 2025
  • Accept Date 04 October 2025
  • First Publish Date 06 October 2025
  • Publish Date 21 March 2026