Exercise, Insulin Resistance, and Chronic Pain in Postmenopausal Women.

This study aims to investigate the effects of a combined exercise program on chronic pain in postmenopausal women, considering insulin resistance as a potential physiological mediator. The intervention will assess changes in pain intensity, metabolic and inflammatory biomarkers, psychosocial factors, and body composition. The findings may contribute to understanding the metabolic mechanisms underlying chronic pain in postmenopausal women and support exercise as a non-pharmacological therapeutic strategy.

Postmenopausal women experience a high prevalence of chronic musculoskeletal pain, potentially influenced by hormonal depletion, metabolic dysfunction, and low-grade systemic inflammation. Insulin resistance has been associated with inflammatory processes and may contribute to peripheral and central sensitization mechanisms involved in chronic pain. This randomized controlled trial will evaluate the effects of a combined exercise intervention, including aerobic, resistance, and mind-body components, on pain intensity and related outcomes in postmenopausal women with chronic pain. Secondary outcomes include metabolic markers, inflammatory biomarkers, psychosocial variables, and body composition. Insulin resistance will be explored as a mediator of pain modulation following the exercise intervention.