The study aimed to investigate the effects of different types of exercise in indicative scores of depression in the elderly. Participated 168 elderly volunteers of both sexes, aged 60-75 years (65.66 ± 4.28 years), 40 women and 128 men. The volunteers were divided into seven distinct groups: a) Sedentary control (n = 40); b) Resisted control (n = 23); c) Walking (n = 23); d) Outdoor (n = 20); e) Cycle ergometer (n = 23); f) Resisted 50% of 1RM (n = 19); and g) Resisted 80% of 1RM (n = 20), and subjected to a protocol of six months of physical training three times a week. The group "a" remained without changing their routine activities during the study period and did not engage in any exercise program, as the group "b" appeared in the laboratory, but performed the exercises without charge. Before and immediately after the study period, the volunteers underwent an evaluation protocol for determination of oxygen consumption and responded to the Geriatric Depression Scale. The results revealed that the groups "c" and "e", who exercised at intensities with predominant aerobic metabolism, showed reduction in depression scores, and other measures were not sufficient to promote reduction in this variable. The data suggest that exercise dominance in aerobic metabolism is more effective in reducing depression scores in elderly.
Depression; Elderly; Exercise; Oxygen Consumption
