Level of physical fitness and adipocyte lipolysis in humans

The present experiment was conducted to study the influence of exercise training on adipose tissue lipolytic activity and to identify the amount of training required to induce maximal adaptation in humans. Fifty-one male subjects were divided into three groups according to their training regimen: 1) sedentary subjects (SS) (n = 21); 2) trained subjects (TS) (n = 15) who had exercised during a period of 20 wk, 5 days/wk, 45 min/session; and 3) experienced marathon runners (MR) (n = 15) who ran an average of 120 km/wk for many years. Biopsies of fat were performed in the suprailiac region after an overnight fast. Adipocyte diameter (AD) and epinephrine-stimulated lipolysis ( ESL ) were assessed on collagenase-isolated fat cells. A lower AD was noted in the MR group compared with the two other groups. Basal lipolysis (BL) and ESL were significantly higher in TS and MR than in controls. Moreover, BL values were comparable in the two trained groups, whereas ESL in the TS group was higher than in the MR group. These results indicate that training increases suprailiac fat cell lipolysis, which seems to adapt maximally within about 4 mo.