The Effects of Exercise on Blood Cholesterol in Middle-aged Men

Abstract

The effects of supervised exercise (three months) on total blood serum cholesterol were studied among 31 sedentary middle-aged men. No effect was observed among subjects with “normal” initial serum levels. However, three “high” level subjects showed an appreciable decrease following exercise compared with two controls with high initial levels. When the subjects of both groups were combined, change in total serum cholesterol generally accompanied a change in body weight regardless of whether the subject was in the exercise or control group. Exercise, therefore, was effective in decreasing total blood serum cholesterol in some subjects, but this effect appeared to be indirect by decreasing body weight. Free serum cholesterol showed the same trends, but the relationship with body weight changes was not as close.