Background: Circulating levels of adiponectin and testosterone decrease in obese men and this increases risks of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
Objectives: The purpose of this study was to survey changes of serum adiponectin and testosterone concentrations following twelve weeks resistance training in obese young men.
Patients and methods: In a semi-experimental study, twenty one obese young men were randomly placed in two groups: resistance training (26.5 ± 2.8 years) and control (27.4 ± 2.9 years). General characteristics of subjects and serum levels of adiponectin and testosterone were assessed before and after training. Resistance training protocol consisted of twelve weeks weight training (3 sessions per week, 10 exercises, 3 sets of 8 - 12 repetitions in each exercise, intensity 60% - 80% of one repetition maximum, rest between sets 1 minute and between exercises 2 minutes, duration of main training 20 - 40 minutes per each session).
Results: Resistance training had no significant effect on body weight and body mass index (P > 0.05), whereas it decreased body fat percent (P = 0.017). Also, serum adiponectin (8.1 ± 1.8 vs. 10.5 ± 2.3 μg/mL) and testosterone concentrations (6.9 ± 2.4 vs. 8.2 ± 1.7 ng/mL) were increased after resistance training (P = 0.033, P = 0.018 respectively), while there were no significant changes in serum levels of these hormones in control group (P > 0.05).
Conclusions: Twelve weeks of resistance training increased serum concentrations of adiponectin and testosterone in obese young men. With respect to inverse associations between changes of adiponectin and testosterone with BFP and insulin level variations after resistance training, it is recommended that obese young men do resistance training to benefit useful decreasing/preventive effects of this type of training against the risks of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Keywords: Adiponectin; Obesity; Resistance Training; Testosterone.