1988 Volume 16 Issue 1 Pages 9-11
This study was conducted to re-evaluate the relation between running distance and plasma high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol concentration in runners. Fifty male endurance runners, aged from 30 to 57yr., were classified into four groups according to training distance per week, with lean untrained subjects, aged from 34 to 56yr. Body fat content in each group, and training distance in each runner group were shown as follows; Untrained, lean: n=12, 13.5%, Trained, Grade I : n=11, 12.7%, 24km/wk, Grade II: n=12, 12.3%, 49km/wk, Grade III: n=13, 11.6%, 66km/wk, Grade IV: n=14, 11.5%, 99km/wk. There were no remarkable differences in the cholesterol concentrations in total plasma (194-208mg/dl) and low-density lipoprotein fraction (105-122mg/dl). Grade I runners (71mg/dl) had slightly, and Grade II, III and IV runners (76, 78, 77mg/dl) had significantly higher HDL cholesterol than untrained men (63mg/dl). This study suggests that regularly performed endurance running increases plasma HDL cholesterol with elevation of running distance up to 25-50km/week, but that further increases in running distance do not result in an additional increase in HDL cholesterol level.
