Major and Classification
Health Promotion and Disease Prevention
Faculty Mentor
Alberto Vallejo, Ph.D.
Department
Dornsife: Human Evolution and Biology
McNair Project
“Caloric Expenditure Differences between Two Acute Modality Bouts of Resistance Training: Endurance and Hypertrophy”
Project Abstract
Resistance training has yet to be acknowledged in the health and fitness field. This is due in part to the fact that very little research has been done to estimate caloric expenditure during resistance training. Purpose: The goal of this study was to determine the caloric expenditure associated with two resistance training bouts, namely an acute endurance and a hypertrophy-specific training bout (as defined by NASCA). Methods: Using a crossover experimental design, four healthy male college-aged subjects (height: 70 inches), whose average fat mass and fat free mass measured by bioelectrical impedance was 14.0 ± 6.2 kg and 65.1 ± 6.8 kg, were tested for their 1RM by NASCA standards on all the exercises in the training bout that consisted of bench press, leg press, dumbbell should press, leg curl, lat pulldown, and seated row. Caloric expenditure during each training bout was measured using a facemask which allowed the Oxycon Mobile Unit to analyze the inspired gas. A within subjects t-test was performed to compare results (heart rate, oxygen uptake) obtained for the two bouts. Results: There was a trend (P=0.2) for heart rate during the acute endurance bout to be higher (127.1± 8.1 bpm) than that observed during the hypertrophy-specific bout (121± 12.9 bpm). There was also a trend (P=0.16) for oxygen uptake (mL/min*kg) to be higher during the hypertrophy-specific bout (15.0± 2.7) than during the acute endurance (13.5± 2.3) bout. Conclusion: These findings suggest that hypertrophy-specific resistance training might be a better resistance training prescription for weight loss. However, given the small sample size utilized in this study, future studies should aim to test more subjects to confirm this finding.