Jogging and weight training associated with increased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in Taiwanese adults

ABSTRACT

Background

Although previous studies have shown that aerobic and resistance exercise increase high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, the optimal type of exercise has not been determined. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the association of jogging (a type of aerobic exercise) and weight training (a type of resistance exercise) with HDL-C levels in Taiwanese adults.

Methods

The data used in this cross-sectional study were obtained from the Taiwan Biobank (TWB), which is a national health resource that contains the genetic information of Taiwanese volunteers aged 30–70 years. A total of 75,635 subjects (47,881 women and 27,754 men) were included in this study. The subjects were divided into four groups: jogging (n = 2,278), weight training (n = 522), mixed exercise (n = 519), and no exercise (n = 72,316). The TWB data were collected through questionnaires (e.g. basic characteristics, lifestyle factors, and disease history), biochemical tests, and anthropometric measurements.

Results

Compared with no exercise, jogging, weight training, and mixed exercise were all associated with higher HDL-C levels (β = 2.5470, 2.6249, and 3.2117, respectively). As seen, the β value was highest for the mixed exercise group, followed by weight training and then jogging (p for trend <0.0001).

Conclusions

In the current study, jogging and weight training were individually associated with higher levels of HDL-C. Engaging in both activities was associated with much higher levels of HDL-C. Our findings suggest that regular jogging and weight training might play an important role in increasing HDL-C levels.

KEYWORDS:

• Physical activity
• high-density lipoprotein
• Taiwan Biobank

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Ministry of Science and Technology and the National Institute of Health for their financial support.

Authors’ contributions

HCC participated in the design, conducted the statistical analyses, interpreted the data, and drafted the manuscript. LYP and LCC supervised the study, assisted in data interpretation, and critically reviewed the manuscript. NON and CYT helped in conducting the study and revising the manuscript. LCF, LWY, and WMC helped to manage and analyze the data. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

This study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and the protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Chung Shan Medical University (CS2-16,114).

Data availability statement

The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by grants from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST 110-2121-M-040-002, MOST 111-2121-M-040-002, MOST 109-2811-M-040-500, MOST 110-2811-M-040-001, and MOST 111-2811-M-040-001). The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.