Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a heterogeneous condition with airflow limitation and obstructive characteristics of respiratory function. In addition, musculoskeletal dysfunction and negative changes in body composition, among other comorbidities associated with this disease, result in a low quality of life. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR), which includes physical exercise, can positively contribute to improving the clinical conditions in individuals with COPD. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aims to summarize the scientific evidence on the impact of physical exercise on body composition and functionality in individuals with COPD. METHODS: Through Boolean searches, which were carried out in the PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science databases, 989 studies were identified. Among these studies, six were selected based on the eligibility criteria. RESULTS: These studies presented a level of evidence II according to National Health and Medical Research Council criteria, with a predominance of regular methodological quality of regular according to the PEDro scale. Four studies presented a high risk of bias, and two presented a low risk of bias according to the criteria of the RoB instrument. The isolated assessment of each domain (2.0 Cochrane) presented a prevalence of 57% with a low risk of bias, followed by 23% with high risk and 20% with an uncertain risk of bias. According to the data regarding outcomes of different studies, an improvement in functional capacity through physical exercise by individuals with COPD was observed. Simultaneously there were reports regarding body composition demonstrating no significant improvement in fat-free mass and fat mass. CONCLUSIONS: Improvements in the body composition and functionality in individuals with COPD can promote a better quality of life, favoring the management of this population. This systematic review presents evidence of the potential benefit of improving the functionality of individuals with COPD. Other aspects of the health of this population were also improved, such as quality of life. However, the results related to body composition are inconclusive regarding a decrease in fat mass and an increase in fat-free mass. Therefore, studies of higher quality should be developed to evaluate the effects of physical exercise on the body composition of individuals with COPD.

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