Body fat fell with both exercise plans in older adults with HIV
Body fat percentage fell by a relative 3.3% in each group over 16 weeks, with no statistically significant difference between exercise intensities.
Registered NCT04550676
Limit: The study lacked a non-exercise control group to attribute changes to exercise alone
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
Among 95 sedentary adults aged 50 or older with HIV, a secondary analysis of a randomized trial compared two supervised exercise programs. Participants had suppressed HIV levels for at least a year and reported fatigue. Their median age was 58, and 14% were female. The trial enrolled 118 people; this analysis included those with body scans before and after training.
Both groups exercised three days a week for 16 weeks and lifted weights. One alternated high-intensity walking or jogging with lower-intensity periods; the other exercised continuously at moderate intensity. Body fat percentage fell by a relative 3.3% from baseline in each group. Lean mass rose by 1.7% with interval training and 1.2% with continuous exercise. No body-composition changes differed significantly between groups.
Why it matters
For older adults with HIV, the findings help inform exercise choices aimed at reducing fat while increasing lean tissue.
Caveats
The analysis included only participants with both scans and had no non-exercise control group; finding no significant difference does not establish equivalence. Results concern sedentary, fatigued adults with suppressed HIV, most of whom were male.
From the paper
- Participants
Among 118 enrolled PWH, 95 completed pre-and post-training DXA scans and are included in the present analysis.
- Who took part
This study enrolled sedentary older adults with HIV at the University of Colorado (Aurora, CO, USA) and the University of Washington (Seattle, WA, USA).
- Ages
The median (interquartile range [IQR]) age was 58 (54, 61) years.
- Sex
Approximately 14% were female, 14% Black or African American, and 81% were classified as overweight or obese (BMI ≥25 kg/m²).
- Duration
After all baseline assessments were completed, participants were randomized 1:1 to 16 weeks of either HIIT or CME training, using permuted blocks balanced by site, biological sex, and age.
- Result
There was no significant change in BMI or total body mass within arms (−0.27% [95% CI: −1.3, 0.8] in HIIT; −0.45% [95% CI: −1.5, 0.6] in CME) or between arms.
Results, Change in body composition parameters and total mass
- Limitation
First, all subgroup analyses were considered exploratory and should be interpreted with caution.
- Body fat percentage
Body fat percentage decreased by an average of 3.3% in both HIIT and CME (95% confidence interval [CI]: −5.0, −1.6 in HIIT; −5.1, −1.6 in CME).
Results, Change in body composition parameters and total mass
- Lean mass
Both intervention arms had significant increases from baseline in total lean mass (1.7% [95% CI: 0.7, 2.7] in HIIT; 1.1% [95% CI: 0.1, 2.2] in CME) and ALM (3.4% [95% CI: 1.5, 5.3] in HIIT; 2.2% [95% CI: 0.2, 4.1] in CME).
Results, Change in body composition parameters and total mass
Quoted word for word from the full text on PubMed Central.
- Continuous moderate-intensity exercise
- High-intensity interval training
- Lipid and ceramide metabolism
- HIV infection
- Body fat percentage
- Humans
The paper
University of Colorado Anschutz
The Journals of Gerontology, Series A, May 4, 2026, Open access
Comments
Be the first to comment.