Metabolomics and Insights into Exercise

[haha]

I read an interesting article about metabolomics, the study of metabolites by examing blood.

Video: Clues in the blood: scientists explain the emerging field of metabolomics | Harvard Magazine

Very interesting field, and IMO likely to make much more media splash over time. But an interesting idea that I caught from the print version of the article is that the old idea that if you are trying to lose weight with diet and exercise, and you are not losing much, you are cheating or not doing enough exercise is just wrong. Some people lose weight very easily when they exercise, and they show the increased glycerol in their blood that the 2nd doctor mentioned. Others work just as hard, but don't get the change, and don't show so much glycerol either. He did also point out that these relative non-responders on weight will nevertheless be getting very hlpful metabolic changes from their exercise.

He also said that as few as 3 short (8-12 minute exercise sessions) spaced throughout the day can have a powerful metabolic effect, even if the appearance of the body may be relatively unchanged.

Ha

 

[ERD50]

He also said that as few as 3 short (8-12 minute exercise sessions) spaced throughout the day can have a powerful metabolic effect, even if the appearance of the body may be relatively unchanged.

Ha

Thanks, I'll read the article later, but I have been thinking about this short, multiple bursts of exercise approach. I often get bored trying to do a 30 minute work out, I bet several short bursts would work better for me.

-ERD50

 

[rgarling]

... that the old idea that if you are trying to lose weight with diet and exercise, and you are not losing much, you are cheating or not doing enough exercise is just wrong. Some people lose weight very easily when they exercise, and they show the increased glycerol in their blood that the 2nd doctor mentioned. Others work just as hard, but don't get the change, and don't show so much glycerol either. He did also point out that these relative non-responders on weight will nevertheless be getting very hlpful metabolic changes from their exercise....

I did not see this conclusion in the article listed with the video. Where did it come from? (Did you extrapolate from the observation that fit individuals can burn fat up to 11x the rate of less fit?)

 

[haha]

I did not see this conclusion in the article listed with the video. Where did it come from? (Did you extrapolate from the observation that fit individuals can burn fat up to 11x the rate of less fit?)

No, here is the quote:"One metric commonly used to measure whether individuals are benefitting from exercise, [Gregory Lewis] points out, is whether they lose weight-and some people get discouraged if their weight doesn't change after 6 to 8 weeks on a training program, and they quit. If you could show people tangible evidence- 'These 6 metabolites that predict future onset of cardiovascular disease changed 35% by virtue of doing this exercise'-that is a potentially powerful motivational tool".

He says "if", because he is discussing the use of this information in clinical and public health settings. The rest of the article supports the idea that exercise does affect metabolites that affect health, even in the absence of weight change, and that these metabolites can be measured in peripheral blood. So this could be done, given the infrastructure buildout. (But IMO not going to happen, except in high end executive programs and athletic programs.)

I don't have this problem of weight stickiness- I could lose a pound a day for a short while if I had reason to, and I did this regularly when I had to make weight in college-but one of my sons is very diligent about his diet and he exercises harder than anyone I have ever known who wasn't training for a competition, but he so far has not been able to get off all his excess abdominal fat. He got rid of a lot of his "university student/programmer belly", but he struggles with the remainder. OTOH, his younger brother plays soccer and snowboards but pays little attention to his diet and does no gym work and has a body Fat % below 10.

Did you notice where blood taken from a catheter in the leg of a guy who was pedaling on a stationary bike showed higher concentration of these exercise metabolites than blood taken from more distant sites?

I am going to be more diligent in my exercise program, because I find this information very compelling. And motivationally, it gives the exerciser a valid reason to focus on process, rather than results, which in my experience is a more robust motivation.

Ha

 

[rgarling]

OK. Thanks. I read a different article: Metabolomics, the study of metabolites, provides telling clues to future health | Harvard Magazine May-Jun 2011

Anyhow, everyone is different and has varying capacity for overeating. The natural over-eaters are easily the majority. In my experience, quitting smoking is much easier than quitting over-eating. I need to avoid food completely for most of the day or I *will* over-eat. If you google "intermittent fasting" you can get information on the method that works well (and easily) for me. (fwiw I use a 6 hour window)