It has been shown that bouts of high-intensity exercise may reduce subcutaneous adipose
tissue more than low-intensity exercise. The aim of the present study was to examine
if a discontinuous training protocol is more successful in reducing adipose tissue
than a continuous endurance training protocol. Fourteen untrained male volunteers
were divided into two groups and trained for 10 weeks performing 3 discontinuous or
3 continuous workouts weekly (discontinuous exercise: 25 times 80 s 35 % V˙O2max and 40 s 80 % V˙O2max; continuous exercise: 50 min 50 % V˙O2max). The discontinuous and the continuous training resulted in a similar subcutaneous
adipose tissue loss, determined by skinfold measurement, in the leg above the patella
(-2.4±2.4 and -2.4±1.4 mm, respectively). The normalised plasma concentrations of
free fatty acid, glycerol, β-hydroxybutyrate, and lactate were similar throughout
the final exercise test at the end of the training period. Our data suggested that
the discontinuous protocol, selected so that the average intensity was similar to
that of the continuous protocol, was not better than the latter in reducing subcutaneous
adipose tissue.
Subcutaneous adipose tissue, free fatty acid, glycerol, fat reducing exercise, food
intake.
