Lift it to lose it: Study shows weight training keeps the bulge at bay

WEIGHT training is the key to keeping the middle age spread at bay, suggests a new study.

A man lifting dumbellsGETTY

Regular weight training keeps fat at bay

Researchers found healthy men who did 20 minutes of daily weight training had less of an increase in abdominal fat, compared with men who spent the same amount of time doing aerobic activities.

The findings, published online in the journal Obesity, showed combining weight training and aerobic activity led to the most optimal results. However, aerobic exercise by itself was associated with less weight gain compared with weight training.

Study lead author Doctor Rania Mekary, a researcher in Harvard School of Public Health's (HSPH) Department of Nutrition, said: "Because ageing is associated with sarcopenia, the loss of skeletal muscle mass, relying on body weight alone is insufficient for the study of healthy ageing.


Frank Hu

"Measuring waist circumference is a better indicator of healthy body composition among older adults. 


Previous studies had been focused on a specific population, such as overweight people or those with type 2 diabetes, and were of short duration and had mixed results. 

The new study was long-term with a large sample of healthy men with a wide range of body mass index (BMI).

Dr Mekary and colleagues studied the physical activity, waist circumference and body weight of 10,500 healthy American men aged 40 or more.

Their analysis included a comparison of changes in the participants' activity levels over a 12-year period to see which activities had the most effect on their waistlines. 

Those who increased the amount of time spent in weight training by 20 minutes a day had less gain in their waistline compared with men who similarly increased the amount of time they spent on moderate-to-vigorous aerobic exercise, and yard work or stair climbing. 

However, those who increased the amount of time they spent sat down, such as watching TV, had a larger gain in their waistline.

The study's senior author Frank Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at HSPH, said: "This study underscores the importance of weight training in reducing abdominal obesity, especially among the elderly.

"To maintain a healthy weight and waistline, it is critical to incorporate weight training with aerobic exercise."