Physical training in human obesity. 3. Effects of long-term physical training on body composition

Eight severely obese patients with adipose tissue hypercellularity, elevated body cell mass, and a juvenile onset of obesity were subjected to physical training during 6 mo without dietary restrictions. The training program was of 35-min duration three times weekly and followed a fixed schedule individualized to the working ability of each subject, so that the heart rate was 10–15 beats below maximal during three 5-min periods of each training session. Body weight, body cell mass, and body fat showed no significant changes after 3 or 6 mo of training. Fasting plasma insulin decreased after 3 mo of training, but fasting blood glucose was not changed. After 6 mo plasma insulin values were still decreased. Now glucose tolerance had also improved, and plasma triglycerides showed a trend to lower values. The results suggest that the lack of body fat decrease after the long training period might be characteristic for subjects with the type of severe obesity studied, because in a previous study¹ a similar, although lighter, training procedure produced a marked body fat decrease in patients without severe obesity.