Fitness Science: Endurance Training Decreases Bellyfat for Us Older Folks

There are benefits to using free Wi-Fi at major universities; I get access to most of UCLA's free library articles.  I did a scholarly article search for Endurance Training and came across an interesting 2015 article from the Public Library of Science where Japanese researchers compared the effects of an 8-week endurance cycling protocol on both younger (approx. 21 y.o.) and older people (approx. 67 y.o.).  There were 14 subjects in each age group. Subjects in the EXERCISE groups bicycled for 45-minutes at 60-70% of their VO2 max, 3x per week, while control subjects did not.
The study observed blood concentrations of Irisin in all groups.  Irisin is a controversial substance that's supposed to mediate beneficial exercise effects on human metabolism.  Studies as recent as March 2015 suggest that such a substance is a myth, so I won't discuss it further.

The significant result was that the older subjects lost more abdominal visceral fat than the younger ones.  A MRI of the abdomen was performed to measure the cross sectional area of abdominal visceral fat and the younger subjects lost an average of 2.5 square cm. while older subjects lost an average of 15.2 square cm., about six times more than their younger counterparts!!
The sample size of this study was relatively small so I wouldn't give it too much credibility...yet.  I'm a middle aged endurance junky so you bet I'm going to post things to promote what I'm doing.  The bulk of my training is for endurance but I make it a point to include at least two days of strength training per week to enhance and support athletic performance.
The moral of the story is that endurance training may be a better way to decrease bellyfat among middle-aged and older individuals.

You can check out the article by clicking on the following link:

Endurance Training-Induced Increase in Circulating Irisin Levels Is Associated with Reduction of Abdominal Visceral Fat in Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Happy training and remember to consult your physician before you start slamming miles of endurance training.

DAVE