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Resistance Training Does Not Contribute to Improving the Metabolic Profile after a 6-Month Weight Loss Program in Overweight and Obese Postmenopausal Women

Faculty of Physical Education and Sports (M.B.), University of Sherbrooke, J1K 2R1, and Research Centre on Aging, Health and Social Services Centre (M.B.), Sherbrooke University Institute of Geriatrics, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada J1H 4C4; Departments of Nutrition (M.F.M., V.M., I.S., R.R.-L.) and Kinesiology (J.-M.L.), University of Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3T 1C5; School of Human Kinetic (E.D., D.P.), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1H 8L6; and Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (I.S., R.R.-L.) and Montréal Diabetes Research Centre of the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (I.S., R.R.-L.), Montréal, Québec, Canada H2W 1T8

Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Martin Brochu, Ph.D., Centre de Recherche sur le Vieillissement, Pavillon D’Youville, 1036, Rue Belvédère Sud, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada J1H 4C4. E-mail: martin.brochu{at}usherbrooke.ca.

Context: Limited data are available regarding the impact of caloric restriction (CR) in combination with resistance training (RT) on the metabolic profile of postmenopausal women.

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine whether RT adds to CR in improving body composition and the metabolic profile.

Design and Setting: This was a 6-month, randomized, clinical trial.

Patients: Patients included 107 postmenopausal women (body mass index >27 kg/m²).

Intervention: The intervention was a 6-month CR alone or in combination with a RT program.

Main Outcome Measures: Fat mass (FM), lean body mass (LBM), abdominal sc fat and visceral fat, fasting lipids, insulin sensitivity, resting blood pressure, and inflammation markers were measured.

Results: Both groups were similar at baseline and significantly decreased body weight, body mass index, FM, percent FM, abdominal sc fat, and visceral fat after the study (P < 0.001), with greater losses of percent FM and trunk FM in the CR + RT group (P < 0.05). LMB significantly decreased in the CR (–0.9 ± 2.4 kg) and the CR+RT (–0.4 ± 2.2 kg) groups (P < 0.005), with no difference between them. Both groups significantly improved plasma triglycerides, fasting insulin level, glucose disposal, and markers of the inflammation profile after weight loss (P < 0.05), with no difference between groups. No improvements were observed for the other variables of interest in both groups.

Conclusions: CR+RT was associated with greater losses in percent FM and trunk FM compared with CR alone. However, CR+RT was not associated with additional improvements in the metabolic profile compared with CR alone.