Protein Diet, Exercise Aids Weight Loss

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Protein Diet, Exercise Aids Weight Loss

September 22, 2005

URBANA, Ill. (AP) -- A high-protein diet can make

regular exercise more effective for women trying to

lose weight -- helping to build muscle while trimming

body fat, a small study suggests.

In a four-month period, the protein-rich diet along

with exercise significantly reduced abdominal fat and

triglycerides, risk factors for heart disease,

according to findings published in the August issue of

the Journal of Nutrition.

" People thinking about doing exercise want a return on

that investment, " said K. Layman, a professor

of nutrition at the University of Illinois'

Urbana-Champaign campus, who led the study. " Our way

of looking at it is the protein-rich diet basically

boosts the benefit of doing exercise. "

The study was largely funded by beef and dairy

interests. A nutritionist not involved with the study

said that what the research really showed is that

exercise is important for losing fat and preserving

muscle.

" That's exactly what we want to have happen in a

weight reduction diet, " said a Anding, a

clinical dietitian at the Baylor University College of

Medicine who works with the Houston Texans football

team.

She cautioned that diets should not be

protein-dominant and noted that the average American

eats " more protein than we need to begin with. "

Many high-protein diets, such as the Atkins plan, have

fallen from favor with consumers in recent months.

Layman's diet for the study was lower in fat and

called for more fruits and vegetables than the Atkins

diet.

The research was funded by the Illinois Council on

Food and Agricultural Research, the National

Cattlemen's Beef Association, Kraft Foods and the Beef

Board.

Forty-eight women took part in the study, eating about

1,700 calories per day. Half ate a diet rich in meat

and dairy while half ate a diet that contained more

complex carbohydrates, such as rice or pasta.

Each group was then split between women who were asked

to walk 30 minutes a day, five days a week, and women

who were required to walk at least that much and

participate in two 30-minute weightlifting sessions

per week.

The low-exercise group was voluntary and averaged less

than 100 minutes per week. The other group was

supervised and averaged more than 200 minutes of

exercise per week, Layman said.

All the women who exercised at least 200 minutes per

week lost about the same amount of weight whether they

ate a high-protein or a high-carb diet. But almost all

the weight lost by those who ate the protein diet was

fat, while almost one-third of the weight lost by

those on the high-carb diet was muscle.

While the research involved only women, there is no

reason to believe that men would not have the same

results, Layman said.

Shirley Washington swears by Layman's diet. Even

though she is still overweight at 267 pounds, she has

lost 90 pounds while following it.

" It's been really easy, " said Washington, a

55-year-old Chicago grandmother. " I tell anyone if you

can't make it on this eating plan, you can't make it. "

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press. All rights

reserved.