Simultaneous Effect of Eight Weeks of Metabolic Resistance Training and CGA Supplementation on Weight Loss and Fat Profile of Overweight Women

Obesity and being overweight is one of the major public health challenges all around the world. The prevalence of being overweight has been increasing over the past decade and it is estimated that more than 2 million people are overweight now. Obesity is associated with an increased risk of some chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancers. Several different approaches like exercise training have already been introduced to combat obesity and overweight. According to previous studies, comprehensive approaches including training exercises, dietary supplements, and medications could provide the best outcome. Metabolic resistance training has been shown as a promising approach to weight loss with higher efficacy compared with other types of exercise training. Moreover, such effects have also been reported for Chlorogenic Acid (CGA). In the current study, we aimed to compare the simultaneous effects of 8 weeks of MRT and CGA on weight loss and lipid profile of overweight women.

We performed an open-label randomized clinical trial on 40 women with overweight. Study participants were women with body mass index (BMI) between 25 to 28 who were physically active over the past 6 months before the study. We used a balanced block randomization method for case assignment. The study participants were randomly assigned to either the intervention group or a control group. The intervention given to the study participants was a combination of MRT and CGA supplements. Each MRT training session was 45 minutes including 10 minutes of warm-up, 30 minutes of MRT, and 5 minutes of cool-down. They also received CGA supplements as a form of green coffee extract (400 mg per day). We collected data on age, weight, height, BMI, medical history, and volume of physical activity for each participant. Data on lipid profiles including HDL, LDL, total cholesterol, and triglyceride were also collected for each participant at baseline using blood samples. Study participants were asked not to have vigorous exercise two in the last two days leading to blood sampling. Blood sampling was performed from the participant’s right-hand vein at 8 AM and all study participants were fasting in the last 12 hours. The same procedures were also repeated after 8 weeks of intervention.We provided and mean and standard deviation for each continuous variable. The mean comparison between intervention and control groups was performed using an independent t-test. Withing group variability of lipid profile was investigated using paired t-test. We also used a multiple linear regression model to assess the effect of CGA+MRT intervention on the lipid profile of overweight women adjusted for possible confounders. All statistical analysis was performed using Stata 17.0 software and P-values <0.05 were considered significant.  

We compared baseline characteristics and observed no statistically significant difference between the intervention and control groups regarding age, weight, and BMI. Lipid profile at baseline was also compared between these groups and there was no statistically significant difference (P >0.05). The average BMI change in the control group was 0.4 kg/m2, while it was 0.7 kg/m2 in the intervention group. We also observed a significant decrease in HDL, TC, and TG in the intervention group over the study period (P <0.05). However, no significant change was observed in the control groups regarding the investigated outcomes (P >0.05). The linear regression model showed that after adjustment for the potential confounders the average BMI reduction in the control group was 0.6 kg/m2 higher in the intervention group than the control group and the observed association was statistically significant (P <0.05). We also observed that MRT and CGA intervention has led to more reduction in HDL level on average (Regression coefficient= -8.9, 95% CI= -10.9, -7.0). The effect of the intervention on TG and TC was also statistically significant and the intervention significantly reduced the level of TG and TC in comparison to the control group (P <0.05).

The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of eight weeks of metabolic resistance training and CGA supplement extracted from coffee beans on the body weight and lipid profile of overweight women. We showed that MRT and CGA supplementation could lead reduce body weight and body mass index in the intervention group. The observed difference compared to the control group was also statistically significant. We also observed a significant effect of the intervention on the level of HDL, TG, and TC. According to our data level of HDL, TG, and TC in the intervention group reduced over the study period and the observed difference was statistically significant compared to the control group.We showed that simultaneous CGA and MRT could reduce body weight and body mass index in overweight women. Such findings were supported by many previous researches. Haghighi et al. showed in a study that participating in eight weeks of aerobic exercise and consuming green tea supplements significantly reduced body weight and body mass index. These findings were similarly repeated in the study of Kanha et al. and they showed that consuming CGA for eight weeks leads to weight loss in mice with a high-fat diet and also improves lipolysis pathways. In a systematic review study by Gerji et al., it was shown that the consumption of CGA supplements and coffee extract can lead to weight loss in overweight and obese people. According to previous studies, participating in MRT courses could effectively increase energy consumption and consequently increase fat burning which leads to weight loss. We also observed that MRT and CGA modified the lipid profile of overweight women. According to our findings, women in the intervention group had a lower level of HDL, TG, and TC after 8 weeks of MRT training and CGA supplementation. Their results were consistent with previous studies. Ghasemi et al, in line with the findings of the present study, showed that participating in metabolic resistance exercises with CGA supplementation leads to positive regulation of the lipid profile of overweight people. Animal studies also showed that MRT training and CGA supplementation could significantly reduce the level of TG, TC, and HDL in rats. Several mechanisms including the effect of CGA on LDL receptors and inhibition of mass absorption were introduced to justify these findings. According to our findings, MRT and CGA supplementation could lead to weight loss and reduced BMI in overweight women with a significant positive change in their lipid profile.