Changes in body composition, physical performance and cardiovascular risk factors after a 3-week integrated body weight reduction program and after 1-y follow-up in severely obese men and women.

OBJECTIVE:: To investigate the short- and medium-term (ie, at 1-y follow-up) effects of a hospital-based body weight reduction (BWR) program lasting 3 weeks in severely obese individuals. DESIGN:: Longitudinal, clinical intervention study entailing energy-restricted diet, tailored aerobic-strength exercise, psychological counselling and nutritional education during a 3-week period followed by 49 weeks of indirect supervision at home. SUBJECTS:: In all, 45 women and 19 men aged 30.2±7.2?y (mean±s.d.) with severe obesity (BMI: 41.3±4.3?kg/m2), classified as weight losers (final<initial weight) and regainers (final=initial weight). INTERVENTIONS:: Body composition, physical performance and cardiovascular risk factors before and after the BWR program and at follow-up. RESULTS:: The large majority of the experimental subjects obtained a clinical success after the 1-y period, and the rate was higher in females (n=37/45, ie, 82.2%) than in males (n=11/19, ie, 57.9%). At follow-up, weight losers had higher percent fat-free mass, muscle strength, HDL-cholesterol and self-reported physical activity level and lower total cholesterol and glucose levels than weight regainers (P<0.05-0.01). Males displayed significantly larger fat-free mass losses than females at post-BWR and at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS:: A 3-week hospital-based integrated BWR program resulted in a high rate of clinical success in severely obese individuals at 1-y follow-up (particularly in females), that was associated with increased levels of self-reported physical activity and improved muscle strength and lipid profile. Further research is needed to establish the long-term effects (ie, at 2-5?y) associated to this treatment.European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2005) 59, 685-694. doi:10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602130 Published online 16 March 2005 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]