Sept. 14, 2005
Vigorous Exercise Key In Fat Fight
Study Shows That Exercise Is Best Option To Burn Belly Fat
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(AP / CBS)
Now, consider what participants agreed to do for six months:
Participants used treadmills, stationary bikes and elliptical trainers. They were directly supervised or wore heart-rate monitors to check their workout intensity.
They were also counseled not to diet or change their diet during the study.
Blasting Belly Fat
Before-and-after imaging scans of the belly were done to check visceral fat. The results:
The group that got the most vigorous exercise also had a 7 percent drop in fat around their waistlines. They were the only group that lost fat.
Double-Sided Findings
On one hand, the study shows the high price of inactivity, states Slentz.
Then again, it also shows that people with some extra pounds and no exercise habits can change their ways and reap the rewards.
Modest exercisers logged the equivalent of 11 miles per week. They matched current recommendations from the CDC and American College of Sports Medicine, the researchers note.
Those who got the most exercise did the equivalent of jogging 17 miles weekly. "While this may seem like a lot of exercise, our previously sedentary and overweight subjects were quite capable of doing this amount," says Slentz.
Think Balance
"I don't believe that people in general have gotten lazier," says Slentz. "It's more that they are working too hard or are at their desks working on computers with fewer opportunities to exercise. The situation is out of balance."
The name of the game is regaining that balance by getting more exercise, the study shows.
Consult your doctor before starting a new exercise program.
SOURCES: Slentz, C. Journal of Applied Physiology, October 2005. News release, Duke University Medical Center.
By Miranda Hitti
Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD
© 2005, WebMD Inc. All rights reserved.
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