Women exercising greater than or equal to40 minutes/day, 5 times/week see long-term weight loss.

2003 OCT 2 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Women who exercised 250 to 300 minutes per week, in recommended increments totaling 40 to 60 minutes a day, 5 days per week, and reduced calorie and fat intake, lost up to 15% of their body weight, or about 25 pounds, in about 6 months and kept the weight off for the remainder of the year, according to a University of Pittsburgh study.

John Jakicic, an associate professor of Health, Physical, and Recreation Education (HPRE) in the School of Education, and his colleagues reported their findings in the September 10, 2003, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Their paper was titled "Effect of Exercise Dose and Intensity on Weight Loss in Overweight, Sedentary Women."

The researchers found that the 184 women who completed the study successfully achieved significant weight loss and improved cardiorespiratory fitness through the combination of exercise and diet followed during a 12-month period, although no differences were found as a result of different exercise doses and intensities in study participants.

The study involved adult women ranging in age from 21 to 45 years with a baseline body mass index (BMI) of 27 to 40. Prior to starting this study, the participants were classified as sedentary, which was defined as reporting exercising less than 3 days per week for less than 20 minutes per day over a period of 6 months.

Participants were instructed to exercise 5 days a week, with walking encouraged as the primary mode of exercise. They were randomly assigned to one of four groups: vigorous intensity/high duration, moderate intensity/high duration, moderate intensity/moderate duration, or vigorous intensity/moderate duration.

In addition, participants were ...