Decreased and continued physical activity and plasma lipoprotein lipids in previously trained men

Twenty-three moderately active apparently normal men aged 20-55 participated in a 4-month stamina training programme ending in a marathon run. Fourteen men decreased their training levels and 5 men continued training at the same level in the subsequent 2 months. Fasting lipoprotein lipid concentrations, anthropometric data, performance on a bicycle ergometer, reported values for alcohol consumption, smoking and weekly distance run were recorded at each phase of the study. Both groups of men showed significantly increased levels of plasma triglycerides (TG) and very low density lipoprotein triglycerides (VLDL-TG) during the detraining and continued training period. At the same time, plasma total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDC-C) and very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) increased significantly only in men who decreased their level of training. However, final mean values for plasma lipids and lipoproteins did not significantly differ between the 2 groups of men. It is concluded that levels of plasma lipids and lipoproteins, excepting VLDL-C, do not return to pretraining values during 2 months of detraining.