The effects of combined aerobic and resistance training on inflammatory markers in obese men

Abstract

It is important to treat obesity and the related noncommunicable dis-eases. The main objective of this study is the effect of different training types on inflammatory and immune markers in obesity. Seventeen obese men with body mass index (BMI)≥26 kg/m2 were randomly divid-ed into two groups: aerobic training group (AT; n=9) and combined aer-obic and resistance training group (CT; n=8). Body composition (weight, BMI, %body fat), factors of physical performance (one-repetition maxi-mum [1RM], maximal oxygen uptake [VO2max]), inflammatory markers (interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-α]), immune markers (leukocyte, natural killer cell) were analyzed before and after 8-week training. Body composition (weight, BMI, and %body fat) was signifi-cantly reduced after training in both the AT and CT groups (P < 0.05). As a result of training, VO2max of all training groups was increased and 1RM of CT group was partially improved. In particular, the inflammatory marker, TNF-α was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) and the change was correlated with %body fat in the posttraining CT group. In this study, we found that combined training for 8 weeks improved physical fitness, body composition, and inflammation. It is suggested that restoring obe-sity through combined training of aerobic and resistance exercise is re-lated to changes in serum TNF-α levels.