A comparative analysis of the muscular and aerobic exertion during simulated activities of daily living between men with overweight and obesity versus normal-weight

This study compared relative to maximum thigh muscle activity and oxygen consumption (V̇O₂) during activity tasks in men with overweight and obesity (OW) versus normal-weight (NW).

Thirty-six male participants (21.4 ± 1.9 years), categorized into NW (body mass index, BMI: 22.4 ± 1.8 kg·m⁻², n = 17) and OW (BMI: 28.7 ± 2.2 kg·m⁻², n = 19), engaged in 10 tasks ranging from lying to running. Indirect calorimetry was used to estimate energy expenditure as metabolic equivalents of task (METs), and aerobic effort relative to individual capacity was presented as %V̇O_2peak. Electromyography (EMG) shorts were worn concurrently to quantify thigh muscle (quadriceps and hamstrings) amplitude relative to maximal voluntary contraction (aEMG, %EMG_MVC).

Participants with OW had a lower MET compared to the NW during sitting (1.3 ± 0.2 vs 1.5 ± 0.2, p = 0.024), sitting while playing mobile games (1.3 ± 0.2 vs 1.5 ± 0.2, p = 0.022), 4 km·h⁻¹ walking (4.0 ± 0.4 vs 4.3 ± 0.4, p = 0.029), and 8 km·h⁻¹ running (8.7 ± 0.4 vs 9.5 ± 1.1, p = 0.011). Conversely, participants with OW had a greater aEMG during the 4 km·h⁻¹ walking (21.7 ± 11.9 vs 7.6 ± 3.8%EMG_MVC), 6 km·h⁻¹ (39.7 ± 23.01 vs 4.8 ± 7.6%EMG_MVC) and 8 km·h⁻¹ (55.0 ± 22.5 vs 22.9 ± 10.0%EMG_MVC) running and higher %V̇O_2peak during all tasks compared with NW (all p < 0.001). Generalized mixed linear analysis revealed MET increased less per unit increase in aEMG (β = − 0.2 [− 0.31 to − 0.09], p < 0.001) and %V̇O_2peak (β = − 0.04 [− 0.04 to − 0.03], p < 0.001) for participants with OW as compared to NW participants.

Reaching the same MET-level of physical activity requires greater muscular and aerobic capacity exertion for individuals with OW, which should be considered when measuring and prescribing physical activity for health.