Accrued physical activity may have positive effects on weight, adiposity in overweight adults

Some adults who are either obese or overweight tend to see themselves as less physically active than they actually are, suggests a study. However, accumulating at least 150 min/wk of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) can already provide benefits on a person’s weight and adiposity status.

In this study, the investigators examined the prevalence of ≥150 min/wk of MVPA using different criteria for bout length. They also explored the relationships with obesity measures, cardiorespiratory fitness, and cardiometabolic risk factors in healthy adults with overweight or obesity.

A total of 375 healthy adults (mean age 45.2 years; mean body mass index [BMI] 32.3 kg/m²) enrolled in a behavioural weight-loss intervention provided baseline data for cross-sectional examination.

Using objectively measured MVPA, the investigators categorized participants as follows: LOW-MVPA (<150 min/wk; n=122, 32.5 percent), MVPA-NON-BOUTED (≥150 min/wk inbouts <10 min; n=72, 19.2 percent), MVPA-COMBINED (≥150 min/wk with a combination of bouts <10 and ≥10 min; n=50, 13.3 percent), and MVPA-BOUTED (≥150 min/wk with bouts ≥10 min; n=131, 34.9 percent).

The LOW-MVPA group had greater weight, BMI, and waist circumference than other groups, while the MVPA-BOUTED group showed significantly lower body fatness than the LOW-MVPA group (p<0.05). Differences by category for cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiometabolic risk factors were limited.

These results “may influence physical activity recommendations, and confirmation with prospective and randomized studies is needed,” according to the investigators.