The Study
Resistance Training Preserves Fat‐free Mass Without Impacting Changes in Protein Metabolism After Weight Loss in Older Women
This study is like a fair test where 16 older women were randomly split into two groups: one did weightlifting and the other didn’t, while both ate the same low-calorie diet. The weightlifters kept more muscle than the others — so we can say lifting probably helped keep muscle. But we don’t know exactly how.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
When older women lose weight by eating less, they usually lose muscle too—but lifting weights helps them keep their muscle by stopping water loss, not by changing how their body uses protein.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 554 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—keeping muscle helps older women stay strong, mobile, and less likely to become frail.
- 2Women who lifted weights lost only 0.3 kg of fat-free mass; those who didn’t lost 1.6 kg.
- 3Muscle protein synthesis went up 100% after weight loss, no matter if they lifted weights or not.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Obesity
Year
2009
Authors
Wayne N. Campbell, M. Haub, R. Wolfe, A. Ferrando, D. Sullivan, John W. Apolzan, H. Iglay
Related Content
Claims (6)
When you lift weights over time, the main reason your body becomes leaner and more muscular is because your muscles grow bigger—not because you're losing fat or anything else.
If overweight women in their late 60s cut their daily calories by 500 and lift weights three times a week for 13 weeks, they keep more of their muscle compared to those who don’t exercise—even though both groups lose the same amount of overall weight and fat.
When overweight women after menopause eat fewer calories but don’t lose weight too fast, the weight they lose from their muscle and non-fat tissue is mostly just water going out, not actual muscle or minerals—no matter if they exercise or not.
Even if overweight, postmenopausal women lift weights while eating fewer calories, their body’s use of protein doesn’t change much—but they still keep their muscle mass.
If overweight women who’ve gone through menopause eat 500 fewer calories a day for about 11 weeks, their bodies use and make less of a key protein building block called leucine—but they don’t lose more protein overall or burn more of it for energy.
When overweight women after menopause lose a moderate amount of weight, their muscles start making more protein—even if they don’t lift weights—because their body is trying to use food more efficiently after eating less.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.