Effect of Moderate Intensity Exercise on Body Composition Measurements

© 2020, © 2020 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. The purpose was to determine the effect of 30-minutes of moderate intensity (45–55% of heart rate reserve) on post-exercise (PE) body composition (BC) measurements. Pre-exercise (PreE) BC measurements were taken using air displacement plethysmography (ADP) and bioelectrical impedance analysis including lower-body (LBIA), whole-body (WBIA), and upper-body (UBIA). Forty-eight participants (27 females) were assigned to an exercise condition along with 25 (12 females) to the control condition. BC measurements were recorded immediate PE (PE0), 15-minutes PE (PE15), and 30-minutes PE (PE30). PreE body fat percent (BF%) measurements were 19.7 ± 7.7%, 22.2 ± 9.5%, 24.5 ± 8.8%, and 26.0 ± 8.5% for the UBIA, ADP, LBIA, and WBIA. There was no effect of exercise on UBIA or WBIA. Decreases in PE BF% measurements using ADP and LBIA were found (~2.5%). ADP BF% at PreE was equivalent to PE30, but post-exercise BF% measures remained for LBIA. Therefore, it is reasonable to measure body composition via ADP at PE30