Thursday, February 12, 2009

Intervals and blood lipids

Just thought I'd flag this one up:

The Effect of a High-Intensity Interval Training Program on High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol in Young Men.

This study examined the impact of an 8-week program of high-intensity interval training on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), and the atherogenic index (TC/HDL-C) in 36 untrained men ages 21-36 years. Participants were randomly assigned to an interval training group (n = 20) or a control group (n = 16).

Participants in the experimental group performed 3.2 km of interval running (1:1 work:rest ratio) 3 times a week for 8 weeks at an intensity of 90% of maximal heart rate (~423 kcal per session).

Results indicated significant pre- to posttraining changes in HDL-C (1.1 vs. 1.3 mmol.L, p <> 0.05) with interval training. It was concluded that an 8-week program of high-intensity interval training is effective in eliciting favorable changes in HDL-C and TC/HDL-C but not TC in young adult men with normal TC levels.

Our findings support the recommendations of high-intensity interval training as an alternative mode of exercise to improve blood lipid profiles for individuals with acceptable physical fitness levels.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Funny you should mention this. i used to have terribly low levels of HDL which were throwing of my ratio. Since going primal/paleo, i have doubled my HDL and gotten back into a "normal" ratio range.