Benefits of Exercise on Reproductive Health

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Women's Health Care".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 793

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. Human Performance Lab, Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
2. Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
Interests: endocrinology; ovulation; hormones; menstrual cycle; menopausal transition; heart rate variability; female athletes
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Exercise is defined as movement typically associated with positive outcomes.

We often, however, neglect to highlight the barriers that prevent individuals from being physical activity. Women, individuals who menstruate, those undergoing IVF, or those who are pregnant often face health challenges that can contribute to them not meeting the appropriate recommended physical activity guidelines. Menstrual cramps, pregnancy fatigue, and menopause symptoms may present certain barriers, yet there is also a positive role of physical activity in decreasing these symptoms while maintaining muscle mass and bone density.

In this Special Issue, dedicated to the ‘Benefits of Exercise on Reproductive Health’, we challenge exercise physiologists and other professionals to disseminate studies and quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, or systematic reviews that focus on exercise that includes an aspect of reproductive health in their research. Our goal is to explore the understudied relationship of reproductive health barriers and the benefits of exercise so as to provide women of all ages a supportive rationale to embrace movement.

Prof. Dr. Patricia K. Doyle-Baker
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • exercise benefits
  • reproductive health
  • menstrual and menopause symptom
  • pregnancy
  • physical activity barriers during menses

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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14 pages, 1110 KB  
Systematic Review
The Effects of Different Exercises on Insulin Resistance and Testosterone Changes in Women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: A Network Meta-Analysis Study
by Yuandan Tan, Yujie Liu, Ami Koga, Yuling Yuan, Haohan Yu and Jingmin Liu
Healthcare 2025, 13(17), 2132; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13172132 - 27 Aug 2025
Viewed by 395
Abstract
Objective: To compare the efficacy of exercise modalities for simultaneously improving homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and total testosterone in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Methods: We conducted a Bayesian network meta-analysis of 19 randomized controlled trials (n = 808) [...] Read more.
Objective: To compare the efficacy of exercise modalities for simultaneously improving homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and total testosterone in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Methods: We conducted a Bayesian network meta-analysis of 19 randomized controlled trials (n = 808) to evaluate six exercise interventions: yoga, moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), high-intensity interval training (HIIT), resistance training (RT), combined aerobic-resistance training (CT), and control (CG). Primary outcomes were changes in HOMA-IR and total testosterone, with interventions ranked via surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA). Results: For HOMA-IR reduction, yoga (SUCRA = 90.73%; SMD = −0.73, 95% CrI: −1.3 to −0.086) and HIIT (SUCRA = 74.12%; SMD = −0.47, 95% CrI: −0.75 to −0.15) demonstrated superior efficacy versus MICT (SUCRA = 50.56%) and CT (SUCRA = 42.29%), while RT was the least effective (SUCRA = 32.53%). For testosterone lowering, yoga was ranked the highest again (SUCRA = 92.46%; SMD = −0.85, 95% CrI: −1.7 to −0.12), followed by MICT (SUCRA = 75.72%; SMD = −0.56, 95% CrI: −0.97 to −0.25) and HIIT (SUCRA = 61.12%; SMD = −0.42, CrI: −0.88 to −0.12). CT and RT showed non-significant effects for both outcomes (p > 0.05). Conclusions: Yoga is the optimal intervention for dual-pathway improvement in PCOS. HIIT and MICT provide outcome-specific benefits (metabolic vs. endocrine), whereas CT and RT necessitate protocol refinement. Systematic review registration: This systematic review and network meta-analysis study was registered in PROSPERO (CRD420251011979). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Benefits of Exercise on Reproductive Health)
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