Bl. Marks et al., FAT-FREE MASS IS MAINTAINED IN WOMEN FOLLOWING A MODERATE DIET AND EXERCISE PROGRAM, Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 27(9), 1995, pp. 1243-1251
Weight-loss programs usually result in fat-free mass (FFM) loss along
with body-fat (BF) loss. This study examined which combination of diet
+ exercise would maintain FFM. Forty-four overweight, inactive women
completed 20 wk of a randomized intervention: control (C, N = 6), diet
only (D, N = 10), diet + cycling (DC, N = 8), diet + resistance train
ing (DR, N = 11), or diet + resistance training + cycling (DRC, N = 9)
group. FFM and %BF were determined from hydrostatic weighing. Exercis
e sessions were attended 3 d . wk(-1), with a mean duration of 30 min
per session. Caloric intake was reduced 628 kcal . d(-1) (+/-59). Chi
squares and ANOVA showed no baseline differences between groups for so
cioeconomic status, age, body composition, aerobic capacity, or streng
th. One-way ANOVA of change with Student-Newman Keul multiple range po
st-hoc tests (P < 0.05) were used to analyze pre to post differences f
or %BF, body mass (BM), FFM, VO2max, and strength. D, DC, DR, and DRC
lost significant BM (-3.7 to -5.4 kg) in comparison with C (+1.5 kg).
All groups maintained FFM but only DRC significantly lowered %BF (-4.7
%) in comparison with C. DRC and DC significantly increased VO2max. St
rength 1RM (triceps extension, arm curl, leg extension, chest press) i
ncreased significantly for both DR and DRC. Results suggest that moder
ate levels of caloric restriction, aerobic cycle exercise, and/or resi
stance training are equally effective in maintaining FFM while encoura
ging body mass loss.