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Fibromyalgia is a condition in which a person experiences medically unexplained chronic muscular pain and joint tenderness.

A British study involved 132 people with fibromyalgia who were assigned to either aerobic exercise classes or relaxation classes. They did them twice weekly for 12 weeks. The class instructors were personal trainers with no special experience in training people with medical problems.

At three months, more of the people taking aerobic exercise classes rated themselves as feeling much or very much better than did those taking the relaxation classes. Those benefits were the same or improved after a year, the study says.

The authors say the findings, which appear in this week's British Medical Journal, show the benefits of aerobic exercise for people with fibromyalgia and that it doesn't require specially trained instructors.

However, they also say high dropout rates can be a problem in exercise treatment programs, which is an issue that needs to be studied.

More information

The American College of Rheumatology estimates that 3 million to 6 million Americans, primarily women of childbearing age, are affected by fibromyalgia. Here's a fact sheet on the disorder.