Strength Training May Help Women With Fibromyalgia

“Postmenopausal women with fibromyalgia seem to have less physical strength and endurance than healthy women, so they might benefit from an appropriate training program, a new study by Finnish researchers suggests. Fibromyalgia, which is characterized by pain, fatigue and difficulty sleeping, is most common in women after menopause, Heli Valkeinen of the University of Jyvaskyla and her colleagues note in a report in the International Journal of Sports Medicine, but most studies have focused on women 50 and younger. Some research in premenopausal women has found lower-than-normal muscle strength and aerobic capacity, the researchers add, but fitness has not been investigated in postmenopausal women with fibromyalgia. To determine whether women with fibromyalgia might experience a steeper decline in physical fitness after menopause than their healthy peers, the researchers looked at 23 women with the condition and a comparison group of 11 similar but fibromyalgia-free women. The average age for both groups was 58. They conclude, ‘The results suggest that more attention should be paid to train muscle performance, together with overall training of physical fitness, when developing rehabilitation programs for postmenopausal women with fibromyalgia.’"

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