The metabolic consequences of low and moderate intensity exercise with or without feeding in lean and borderline obese males.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of exercise intensity on the post-exercise thermogenic effect (PETE), with or without feeding, in five lean (less than 15 percent body fat) and five borderline obese (between 20 and 25 percent body fat) individuals when the total caloric expenditure during exercise was equated to 720 kcal by adjusting exercise duration. Each subject participated in six testing sessions, including the measurement of resting metabolic rate (RMR), dietary induced thermogenesis (DIT) following a 720 kcal liquid meal, and four exercise trials including: (1) exercising on a treadmill at both 30 percent and 60 percent of VO2 max followed by a 720 kcal liquid meal (30F and 60F); and (2) exercising on a treadmill at both 30 percent and 60 percent of VO2 max followed by a non-caloric liquid meal substitute (water) matched by volume to the caloric liquid meal (30NF and 60NF). Indirect calorimetry was used to determine metabolic rate prior to each treatment (0-30 min RMR) and at 0-30, 50-60, 80-90, 110-120, 140-150, and 170-180 min following the feeding, exercise only, or exercise and feeding treatments. A significant difference in the post-exercise oxygen consumption was found between the two calorically equated exercise bouts (720 kcal) at 30 percent and 60 percent of each subject's VO2 max without feeding when all measurement periods following exercise were averaged together (60NF = 13.5 percent increase and 30NF = 5.5 percent). This difference was observed in both the lean and borderline obese subjects, with no significant difference between the two groups. In addition, when walking at either 30 percent or 60 percent of VO2 max preceded feeding, a significant attenuation in the rise of post-feeding RER values was observed in both groups with the higher exercise intensity showing the greatest RER attenuation when compared to the DIT trial. These results suggest that exercise intensity may play a significant role independent of the total energy expenditure in potentiating a person's post-exercise oxygen consumption rate and post-exercise substrate utilization for periods of up to 180 mins.