Effects of the 12 Weeks Weight Control Program on Improvement of BMI, Nutrition Knowledge, Physical Fitness and Stress Levels of Adult Obese Women

Kim, Kyung Hee

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of a weight control programs on BMI, nutrition knowledge, physical fitness and stress level of adult obese women. The subjects of this study were 36 adult obese women aged 30-65 years whose BMI were above 23 kg/m2. The weight control program for obese women included nutritional education, exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy for 12 weeks. The BMI of the subjects was significantly decreased (p < 0.001) from 27.1 kg/m2 to 26.4 kg/m2 after the 12 weeks of the weight control program. In addition, the weight of body fat was significantly decreased (p < 0.001) and % body fat was significantly decreased (p < 0.05) from 35.4% to 34.9% after completion of the weight control program. In addition, nutritional knowledge (p < 0.001) and eating behavior scores (p < 0.01) were significantly increased. However, the food intake scores were not changed after the program. Stress levels of the adult obese women were significantly decreased (p < 0.001) from 85.63 to 66.88 and also obesity stress levels were significantly decreased (p < 0.01) after the weight control program. In the physical fitness levels of the subjects, muscle endurance (p < 0.05) and ability of balance (p < 0.01) were significantly improved after completion of the weight control program. There were positive significant correlations between general stress and obesity stress level (p < 0.05), and negative correlations between stress level and food intake score (p < 0.05). These results showed that the weight control program for adult obese women may be effectively used to improve weight reduction, physical fitness and stress levels.