Effect of resistance training and Ursolic acid supplementation on serum levels of adiponectin and insulin in inactive overweight male

It appears that exercise training and consumption of some supplementation can be effective in improving glucose homeostasis and blood lipids by increasing circulating level of adiponectin. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of eight weeks of resistance training (RT) and Ursolic Acid (UA) supplementation on serum level of adiponectin and insulin in inactive overweight men.

This was a semi-experimental study that a total of 34 inactive overweight men (age: 23.35 ± 1.7 years old, weight: 75.64 ± 2.15 kg, body mass index: 29.2 ± 3.6 kg/m2) voluntarily participated in, and randomly assigned into three groups: RT + UA (n=12), RT + placebo (n=12), and UA (n=10). RT program included four upper body and four lower-body movements performed at 70-85% one-repetition maximum. Participants consumed 150 mg of UA along with every meal. Data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance (one-way ANOVA) test by SPSS.

Adiponectin was significantly increased in RT + UA and RT + placebo groups. On the other hand, the serum level of insulin was significantly decreased in these two groups. Changes of both serum adiponectin and insulin were significantly different between the RT + UA and RT + placebo (p<0.001 for both variables), RT + UA and placebo (p<0.001 for both variables), and RT + placebo and placebo groups (p<0.001 for both variables).

Resistance training with ursolic acid supplementation is likely to be more beneficial in preventing cardiovascular disease.