Gordon, Brett A, Knapman, Leona M, Lubitz, Lionel · Clinical rehabilitation · 2010 · DOI
This study compared two types of exercise training—aerobic exercise (like cycling and treadmill walking) and resistance training (strength exercises)—in 22 teenagers with ME/CFS. Both groups exercised five days a week for four weeks. Both types of exercise led to improvements in how much activity the teens could do and their quality of life, though only aerobic training reduced fatigue severity and depression symptoms.
This study directly addresses how to safely manage ME/CFS in adolescents, a vulnerable population with limited treatment options. It provides early evidence comparing two distinct exercise approaches in a structured inpatient setting, informing rehabilitation program design for young people with ME/CFS.
This pilot study cannot establish causation—improvements may reflect inpatient care, time, monitoring, or other factors unrelated to the specific exercise interventions. The small sample size (n=22) and lack of non-exercise control group limit definitive conclusions about efficacy. The four-week timeframe and inpatient setting may not reflect real-world long-term outcomes for adolescents with ME/CFS.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Gordon, Brett A, Knapman, Leona M, & Lubitz, Lionel (2010). Graduated exercise training and progressive resistance training in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome: a randomized controlled pilot study.. Clinical rehabilitation. https://doi.org/10.1177/0269215510371429
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-gordon-2010-graduated-exercise,
author = {Gordon, Brett A and Knapman, Leona M and Lubitz, Lionel},
title = {Graduated exercise training and progressive resistance training in adolescents with chronic fatigue syndrome: a randomized controlled pilot study.},
journal = {Clinical rehabilitation},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1177/0269215510371429},
note = {PubMed: 20605858},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gordon-2010-graduated-exercise},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gordon-2010-graduated-exercise
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