Metabolic responses to acute sprint interval exercise training performed after an oral 75‐gram glucose load in individuals with overweight/obesity

Abstract

There is evidence supporting that acute sprint interval training (SIT) might improve metabolic responses to postprandial glucose, but results are inconclusive.The aim of the present study was to explore the effects of acute SIT on metabolic response and substrate utilization in individuals with overweight/obesity after an oral 75-gram glucose challenge. Thirty-three participants with overweight/ obesity (32.7 ± 8.3 years, 24 male, 9 female) participated in the study and a crossover design was followed. After the 75-gram glucose load, participants were randomly allocated to two groups: no exercise (resting) or SIT protocol. Metabolic data including respiratory quotient (RQ) and substrate utilization rates (fats and carbohydrates) were collected using the COSMED Q-NRG + ® calorimeter. The RQ was significantly lower in the acute SIT group (0.76 [0.01]; p < 0.0001) than in the resting group (0.80 [0.01]; p = 0.036) at the 120-min postprandial time point, and the RQ area under the curve (AUC) was also lower in the SIT group (mean difference of −6.62, 95% CI −12.00 to −1.24; p = 0.0161). The contribution of fat to energy expenditure increased after SIT during the postprandial period whereas the contribution of carbohydrates decreased. The AUC for fat contribution was significantly higher (mean difference 2311.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 578.8 to 4043.3; p = 0.0098) and the AUC for carbohydrate contribution was significantly lower (mean difference −2283.1, 95% CI −4040.2 to −527.1; p = 0.0117) in the SIT group than in the resting group. In conclusions, acute SIT might have a positive effect on metabolic responses to postprandial glucose and, accordingly, should be recommended for improving metabolism in people with overweight/obesity.

Efficacy of Postprandial Exercise in Mitigating Glycemic Responses in Overweight Individuals and Individuals with Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes—A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…The average body mass index (BMI) of all participants in all studies combined was 30 kg·m −2 . Of the 31 selected studies, 21 recruited patients with T2DM [26,[28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55], while the remaining 10 studies involved overweight and obese participants [39,[56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64]. Of those 21 studies on patients with T2DM, 3 included patients that were treated with exogenous insulin [34][35][36], while the rest allowed their participants to use glucose-lowering medications but instructed them to keep the same dosage throughout the study period.…”

“…In the majority of the studies, the experimental treatment, whether PPE or CON, took place within the glucose measurement period. However, two studies did not record blood glucose levels until immediately after exercise cessation [32,56].…”