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

Introduction: 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 nonathletes. Material & Methods: 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. Results: 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 nonathletes in response to Wingate test. Conclusion: Our results suggested that regular exercise caused hormonal adaptation among female athletes in response to acute anaerobic training.