Participants
cardiovascular complaints
To determine the sample size, a power analysis (F-tests, Anova: Fixed effects, special, main effects and interaction) was performed a priori. For the calculation, a medium to strong effect (f) (0.25–0.40), an α-error of 0.05, and a power of 0.8 (1-β error) were specified. Based on the three-arm model (df = 2), a total sample size of 18–36 subjects was calculated. However, since the study will last for a total of 20 weeks and drop-outs were taken into account, the number of subjects was set at a minimum of 40. All volunteers had to be healthy, with no orthopedic or cardiovascular complaints and should be able to perform a squat with the tops of their thighs parallel to the floor. As a result, seven individuals were excluded before the start of the study. After being informed about the study procedures and inclusion criteria, 41 healthy women were enrolled in the study (15/03/2021) after signing informed consent. The classification of the participants as pre-menopausal and post-menopausal was based on hormone concentrations and the date of the last menstrual period [