Enkelt 7-dages krafttræning begynder at reducere fedtcellerne hos mus

Forfatter / Redaktør: Barış Özdemir•12 October 2026

✓ Editorially Verified

Researchers at the University of Campinas in Brazil conducted experiments with obese mice for a week to examine the effects of strength training on fat cells before weight loss began. When people lose weight, there are many biological changes that occur in the body, so it can be difficult for researchers who are trying to measure the effects of nutrition, exercise, or other factors to separate these weight loss effects from what they are trying to measure. The researchers wanted to clarify the effects of strength training on fat cells before weight loss began by looking at the visceral (internal) fat around the organs of the mice before they lost weight. link

“People have been doing strength training for two months, but if they don’t lose weight, they think it’s useless,” says obesity surgery expert Leandro Moura. “But what we saw in this study was that, just after seven days of strength training – even without weight loss – the molecular pathways that promote fat accumulation were less active, while those that stimulate fat breakdown were more active.”

To simulate the effects of weight lifting on the animals, the researchers had obese mice with weights attached to their tails climb a 70-centimeter (27.6-inch) ladder. The sessions consisted of a total of seven, with 20 climbs, 60-90 seconds of rest periods, and the mice working at 70% of their maximum capacity.

“We calculated the weight that each mouse could carry while climbing the ladder,” Moura explains. “Of course, it’s not possible to reproduce the full strength training exercises that a person would do; but we stimulated a similar effort in the body, with more intense contractions, in a way that mimics an effective human strength training session.”

Then, samples of fat tissue taken from the mice that had done the strength training were compared with the tissues of obese mice that had not done any exercise.

In addition to the benefits described above, the team also looked at two proteins, ABHD5 and ATGL. ABHD5, one of the proteins that directs the breakdown of fats, was reduced in obese and sedentary mice, while in the strength training group, ABHD5 levels were normal and there was also an increase in interactions with ATGL, an enzyme that breaks down fats. When the suppression of the Scd1 gene, which plays a role in fat production, was added in mice that exercised, the researchers say there is evidence that strength training, combined with aerobic exercise, can work to promote weight loss.

The research has been published. This article has been verified by Fiona MacDonald (link) and edited by MacDonald (link). We are proud of our process, but we are only human; if you spot an error, please let us know (link).