Cardiorespiratory response during exercise on an aquatic treadmill and land treadmill in adults with type 2 diabetes

Purpose: Aquatic treadmill (ATM) exercise may have similar physiologic effects as land treadmill (LTM) exercises. The intent of this study is to compare the effect of the ATM exercise to LTM exercise in people with type 2 diabetes. Methods: Participants (n=10) were randomly assigned to two groups. People with Type 2 diabetes were recruited then age and gender matched to a healthy sample. Protocols for both ATM and LTM began at 2 mph with 0% grade and increased by 1 mph after 5 minutes. Termination occurred after participants completed the protocol or reached 85% of heart rate reserve. A 2 x 2 x 3 Mixed Factorial ANOVA and a Bonferroni post hoc was used. Results: Heart rate at 2 & 4 mph was significantly different. VO2 and MAP are similar. Conclusion: ATM exercise is an affective mode of exercise for people with type 2 diabetes.