Changes of insulin-like growth factor-1 and cortisol levels following the Wingate anaerobic test among female athletes and non-athletes

The aim of present study was to evaluate the changes of insulin like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and cortisol levels following the Wingate anaerobic test among female athletes and non-athletes.

Twenty four female consist of twelve female athletes (mean age: 45 years of old) and twelve sedentary female (mean age: 44 years of old) voluntary to participate in this study as the subject. All the subjects performed the 30-second Wingate test as the anaerobic exercise. Blood samples collected at rest, end of the Wingate test, and 24 h after intervention for IGF-1 and cortisol determination. Repeated measure ANOVA test was used to evaluate hormonal responses to the anaerobic test.

The results indicated that cortisol levels decreases after the Wingate test in the female athletes compare to the non-athletes (p <0.05). Our results revealed that cortisol levels were lower in the female athletes than the non-athletes (p <0.05). For IGF-1 no significant changes were observed in the female athletes or non-athletes in response to Wingate test.

Our results suggested that regular exercise caused hormonal adaptation among female athletes in response to acute anaerobic training.