Stretching vs Walking for Lowering Blood Pressure

NCT ID: NCT05252208

Last Updated: 2025-04-23

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 96 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2022-03-28
• Study Completion Date: 2026-08-30

Brief Summary

High blood pressure is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Traditionally, one of the ways to treat or prevent high blood pressure is to prescribe aerobic exercise training (i.e. brisk walking). Stretching may also be effective because it may cause changes in blood vessel stiffness and therefore reduce resistance to blood flow. The study will assess a group of individuals (i.e. 96) participating in a supervised stretching or walking program five days per week for six months to determine whether stretching is superior for reducing blood pressure. This research will contribute to recommendations about the most effective exercise programs for reducing blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular disease.

Detailed Description

Hypertension or high blood pressure is a prevalent and leading risk factor for heart disease and stroke afflicting seven million people in Canada and costing our health system approximately $20 billion annually. The prevailing exercise recommendation for people with hypertension is to perform aerobic training (i.e. brisk walking) as a non-pharmacological way to moderately reduce blood pressure. Evidence from several recent studies indicates flexibility training may accrue more positive changes in blood pressure than aerobic training. Additional recent studies show stretching can reduce arterial stiffness and sympathetic nervous system activation, suggesting physiological mechanisms by which blood pressure might be reduced through exercises designed mostly to improve flexibility. The purpose of this study is to determine if a 6-month flexibility program is superior to aerobic training for reducing 24-hour blood pressure measurements, improving measures of vascular function (i.e. arterial stiffness), and improving the ratio of parasympathetic to sympathetic nervous system activation. This study involves a randomized controlled trial of 96 men and women presenting with either high-normal blood pressure (systolic 130 to 139 mmHg or diastolic 85 to 89 mmHg) or stage 1 hypertension (systolic 140 to 159 mmHg or diastolic 90 to 99 mmHg) stratified by blood pressure (i.e. either high normal or stage 1 hypertension), sex, and age (≥55y or <55y) and randomized to one of two groups for six months duration: 1) a flexibility program (30 minutes of stretching per day); or 2) an aerobic training program (30 minutes of brisk walking per day). Assessments pre- and post-intervention and three months later include: 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, arterial stiffness, and heart rate variability. .

Conditions

Hypertension

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: DOUBLE

Study Groups

Stretching

Stretching

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Stretching exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

Stretching (30-45 minutes, 5 days per week, 6 months)

Walking

Walking

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Walking exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

Walking (30-45 minutes, 5 days per week, 6 months)

Interventions

Stretching exercise

Stretching (30-45 minutes, 5 days per week, 6 months)

Intervention Type: OTHER

Walking exercise

Walking (30-45 minutes, 5 days per week, 6 months)

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Systolic blood pressure between 130 and 159 mmHg OR diastolic blood pressure between 85 and 99 mmHg
• Able to walk unaided for 30 minutes
• Can safely perform exercises as determined by the Get Active Questionnaire

Exclusion Criteria

• Not on blood pressure medication unless it has been a stable dose for 6 months and target blood pressure has not been achieved (i.e. below 140/90 mmHg)
• Smoking
• Already performing 150 minutes or more moderate to vigorous physical activity per week
• Already involved in a flexibility-training program (e.g. Yoga or Pilates)
• Pregnant or lactating or planning to become pregnant during the study

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

OTHER_GOV

Sponsor Role: collaborator

University of Saskatchewan

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Phil Chilibeck

Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Philip Chilibeck, Ph.D.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Saskatchewan

Locations

University of Saskatchewan

Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

Canada

Central Contacts

Philip Chilibeck, Ph.D.

Role: CONTACT

phil.chilibeck@usask.ca

306-966-1072

John Ko, M.Sc.

Role: CONTACT

jongbum.ko@usask.ca

306-966-1082

Facility Contacts

John Ko, M.Sc.

Role: primary

jongbum.ko@usask.ca

306-966-1186

Other Identifiers

2874

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id