2.3. Nutritional Intervention
The nutritional intervention lasted 4 months. The diets used for the study had a 30% calorie restriction. The individual energy requirements of each participant were estimated at the beginning, calculating their energy expenditure at rest and during physical activity, to prescribe the hypocaloric diets in a random manner. The macronutrient distribution for the moderately high-protein (MHP) diet was 40% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 30% fat, and for the low-fat (LF) diet, it was 60% carbohydrate, 18% protein, and 22% fat. Both the LF and MHP diets were designed on the basis of a food exchange system. Participants received detailed information from trained dietitians on portion sizes, dietary patterns/eating schedules, and food preparation techniques.