Effect of a 12-Week High-Calorie-Expenditure Multimodal Exercise Program on Health Indices in Women With Overweight: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial
Authors: Abdollahi Diba Mitra , Sari Sarraf Vahid , Amirsasan Ramin , Dabbagh Nikoukheslat Saeid 
Published: April 2024

Background

High-calorie-expenditure training is common among endurance athletes and is an effective strategy for weight loss. Although many training protocols include walking, running, cycling, and swimming according to a target heart rate, there is limited research on high-calorie-expenditure interventions with multimodal training programs using quantitative methods.

Objective

The aims of this research protocol are to (1) develop a high-calorie-expenditure training program to cover target calorie expenditure according to the trainability of women classified as overweight (according to a BMI of 25-29.9 kg/m2); (2) determine the effect of high-calorie-expenditure workouts on conditioning, glycemic variables, and body composition; and (3) evaluate the implementation of the intervention and results in comparison with outcomes obtained under a standard-calorie-expenditure training program.

Methods

This is a randomized controlled trial with a pretest-posttest design. Participants include 33 women with a BMI in the overweight range (25-29.9) allocated to three groups: two intervention groups and one control group. The intervention will be conducted for 12 weeks. Participants in the first group will be assigned an exercise program with high energy expenditure of approximately 3000-3500 kilocalories/week in the form of 5 sessions per week with an intensity of 50%-75% maximum oxygen rate (VO2 max) and 60%-80% target heart rate. The second group will be assigned an exercise program with a standard energy expenditure of approximately 1200-1500 kilocalories/week with 3 sessions per week at an intensity of 60%-75% VO2 max, according to The American College of Sports Medicine guideline. The effects of the multimodal training program with daily tasks will be compared to those of the standard-calorie-expenditure and control (no exercise) conditions with respect to changes in glycemic indices and body composition. Daily calories will be calculated through the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and using Nutrition 4 software.

Results

Preliminary results show significant weight loss in both the high- and standard-calorie-expenditure groups (P=.003). Significant improvements were also found in muscle percentage (P=.05) and BMI (P=.05) for the high-calorie-expenditure group. Analyses are ongoing for glycemic indices, inflammation factors, and blood parameters.

Conclusions

High-calorie-expenditure training can cause further weight loss than standard exercise, which can eventually lead to greater fat mass reduction and improvement in glycemic indices. These results demonstrate that, in some cases, it may be necessary to increase the activity of women and use multimodal exercise programs with increased volume and intensity to increase the expenditure of exercise and daily activity. We found a net effect of exercise and daily activity at the individual level, whereas the daily lifestyle and physical behaviors of the participants remained constant.

Trial Registration

Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials IRCT20220202053916N1; https://tinyurl.com/c8jxfw36

International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)

DERR1-10.2196/51599