Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society Vol. 18, No. 11, pp. 1191/1197 DOI: 10.1097/gme.0b013e31821b00b0 * 2011 by The North American Menopause Society Effects of body composition and menopause characteristics on maximal oxygen uptake of postmenopausal women Florbela da Rocha Araga ˜o, 1 Catarina Gavia ˜o Abrantes, PhD, 2 Ronaldo Euge ´nio Gabriel, PhD, 3 Ma ´rio Fernando Sousa, MD, 4 Camil Castelo-Branco, MD, PhD, 5 and Maria Helena Moreira, PhD 2 Abstract Objective: The aim of this study was to identify the effects of body composition and menopause characteristics on maximal oxygen uptake (V ˙ O 2max ) variation in postmenopausal women. Methods: The study was conducted on 208 healthy women aged 49 to 79 years. Data related to menopause were obtained through medical history. Measurements of fat mass, visceral fat area, skeletal muscle mass (SM), fat-free mass, and basal metabolic rate were assessed by octopolar bioimpedance. SM index was calculated using the formula SM index = SM/weight, and V ˙ O 2max was assessed through a modified Bruce protocol. Results: Cardiorespiratory fitness was negatively associated with age, percent fat mass, visceral fat area, body fatYmuscular condition, and central adiposityYmuscular condition. Only time elapsed since menopause revealed a statistically significant correlation with V ˙ O 2max . Age and time of menopause aside, body fatYmuscular condition was related to the V ˙ O 2max variation, presenting an interactive effect with basal metabolic rate. Central adiposityYmus- cular condition also affects V ˙ O 2max ; however, the association of all interactions, age, basal metabolic rate, and time elapsed since menopause was not significant. Conclusions: Our data suggest an impairment of cardiorespiratory fitness with increasing age and time elapsed since menopause, but especially in the presence of increased total and central adiposity or reduced SM index. Body fatYmuscular condition was significantly related to the V ˙ O 2max variation, regardless of age and time elapsed since menopause, but not of basal metabolic rate. Central adiposityYmuscular condition was a significant and independent factor of the V ˙ O 2max exerciseYrelated variations . Key Words: Cardiorespiratory fitness Y Body composition Y Characteristics of menopause Y Postmenopausal women. C ardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is the ability to perform dynamic exercise, using large-muscle mass, at mod- erate to high intensity for prolonged periods, and is a key component for good health. 1 For older adults, this is particularly significant given the well-reported age effect. The maximal oxygen consumption (V ˙ O 2max ) is known to decline with age at a rate of approximately 10% per decade from age 30 years. 2<7 Current evidence suggests that in middle-aged and older postmenopausal women (PM), the V ˙ O 2max rate loss could also be related to estrogen status. 7 However, it is not known if this accelerated decline in V ˙ O 2max during the menopausal tran- sition could be also a result of reduced estrogen production. The role of hormone therapy (HT) is also unclear. Whereas some authors state that estrogen therapy is associated with a better CRF when combined with exercise, 8 some say that this higher V ˙ O 2max is independent of physical activity, 9 and others proclaim that these effects are not clear or significant. 10<14 Other important changes occur during menopause. Low levels of CRF combined with the several hormonal changes in the menopausal transition are associated with an increased total body and visceral fat mass (FM), 15,16 metabolic syn- drome, 17 risk of other cardiovascular diseases, 18 and pro- gressive reduction in lean tissue, which can be countered with exercise. 15,16,19,20 Whereas some authors 15,16,21 announce that the loss of fat-free mass (FFM) and the increase in adiposity contribute to a decline in the peak of V ˙ O 2 , others 3 state that this rate of decline is independent of baseline variables such as body composition (eg, lean body mass and lean/fat ratio). Received January 16, 2011; revised and accepted March 17, 2011. From the 1 Research Centre in Sports Sciences, Health and Human Development (CIDESD), 2 Department of Sport Sciences, Exercise and Health, Research Centre in Sports Sciences, Health and Human Devel- opment (CIDESD), 3 Department of Sport Sciences, Exercise and Health, Centre for the Research and Technology of Agro-Environment and Bio- logical Sciences, University of Tra ´s-os-Montes and Alto Douro, Vila Real; 4 Portuguese Menopause Society, Lisbon, Portugal; and 5 Clinic Institute of Gynecology, Obstetrics and Neonatology, Hospital Clinic, University of Barcelona, Institut d’Investigacions Biome `diques August Pi i Sunyer Barcelona, Spain. Funding/support: This research was supported by the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (Operational Program for Science and Innovation/DES/59049/2004 and SFRH/BD/63984/2009) and the Operational Program for Science and Innovation 2010, cofinanced by European regional development fund (FEDER). Financial disclosure/conflicts of interest: None reported. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. Address correspondence to: Florbela da Rocha Araga ˜o, Departamento de Cie ˆncias do Desporto, Exercı ´cio e Sau ´de, Universidade de Tra ´s-os- Montes e Alto Douro, Quinta de Prados, Apartado 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal. E-mail: faragao@utad.pt Menopause, Vol. 18, No. 11, 2011 1191 Copyright © 2011 The North American Menopause Society. Unauthorized reproduction of this article is prohibited.