About half of young Japanese women have a cold constitution, which heightens susceptibility to cold syndrome. In recent years, new findings on the physiological features of a cold constitution have increased. A cold constitution lowers the quality of daily life, so coldness and the related complaints need to be alleviated. Single dynamic exercise transiently relieves coldness via the warm-up effect. Exercise training decreases sensitivity to cold under normal temperature conditions and enhances peripheral cutaneous vasodilatory responses in young women with a cold constitution. This review provides an overview of the physiological characteristics of women’s cold constitution and the acute and chronic effects of physical exercise as a countermeasure.

This study examined the effects of distractions on ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and affective responses during acute high intensity cycling exercises. Eighteen young males (age: 22.2 ± 1.7 years) visited the laboratory on four sessions. Participants performed three experimental trials following an incremental maximal test. During the three trials, participants performed cycling exercises at 70% VO₂max for 20 min under three conditions: control, active distraction, and involuntary distraction. The participants rated their overall and peripheral RPE at 5-min intervals during the 20-min cycling period. Participants’ affective responses were assessed before and after cycling including positive engagement (PE), negative affect (N-affect), and tranquility. There were no significant differences in RPEs among the three conditions. For affective responses, a significant main effect of condition was seen only for N-affect. This study suggested that active and involuntary distractions do not influence perceived exertion when participants perform 20-min vigorous-intensity exercises. One possible reason for the result is that an inadequate method was used as the active distraction. Further research is required to examine the appropriate methods that promote distraction from bodily sensations during high-intensity exercise.

Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) intervention is critical for saving individuals experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. Manikins are considered useful for CPR training, but their level of realism is low, given the visible structural differences in the chests of biological men and women. However, to our knowledge, no study has examined whether a patient’s sex has an impact on the performance of chest compression. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the quality of chest compression in female patients, in relation to the rescuers’ posture. This single-center cross-sectional study was conducted from July to October 2023 on 34 healthcare professional university students. Two postures for chest compression were analyzed: 1) kneeling beside the patient’s chest (conventional compression) and 2) straddling the patient (straddle compression). The mean age of the 34 participants (18 men and 16 women) was 21.2 ± 0.6 years. Significant differences were found in mean compression depth (p = 0.005) and appropriate compression ratio (p = 0.013) between the conventional and straddle compression, but not in other parameters. In conclusion, the rescuers’ posture during chest compression in female patients affects the compression depth and depth ratio. Straddle compression may facilitate the provision of well-balanced compressions of appropriate depth and depth ratio. These findings can be applied to CPR training and provide guidance for administering chest compression to female patients.