The Effect of Six Weeks of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on Plasma Levels of Cellular and Vascular Adhesion Molecules (ICAM-1 & VCAM-1) in Sedentary Young Men

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of six weeks of high intensity interval training (HIIT) on plasma levels of cellular and vascular adhesion molecules (ICAM-1 & VCAM-1) in sedentary young men. 24 sedentary young men voluntarily participated in this study and were randomly divided into two groups: experimental (n: 12, age: 24.33±1.41 yr, height: 176.22±4.91 cm, weight: 72.27±6.59 kg) and control (n: 12, age: 23.27±2.01 yr, height: 180.22±6.88 cm, weight: 76.27±7.23 kg). Experimental group performed three HIIT sessions per week for 6 weeks. Each session consisted of four to six repeats of maximal sprint running within a 20 m area with 30 sec. recovery. Fasting blood samples were collected one day before and 48 hours after the training protocol for lab analysis. Data were analyzed by independent t test and results showed that six weeks of HIIT significantly reduced ICAM 1 (27.13%) (P=0.027) in the experimental group compared to control group and the decrease (7.15%) in VCAM-1 was not significant (P=0.32). Also, the present study showed a significant increase (8%) in VO2max and a significant decrease (15.68%) in body fat of experimental group compared to control group. Therefore, it appears that HIIT improved plasma levels of cellular and vascular adhesion molecules in sedentary young men in addition to effectively reducing body fat and increasing aerobic fitness. It seems that with regard to time effect, HIIT is an efficient factor to prevent and improve risk factors of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases.