Similar Energy Expenditure During BodyPump and Heavy Load Resistance Exercise in Overweight Women

Purpose High-repetition, low-load resistance exercise in group class settings has gained popularity in recent years, with BodyPump as a prime example. For individuals using exercise for body-weight management, the energy expenditure during exercise is of interest. Therefore, we herein aimed to estimate the energy expenditure during a session of BodyPump and a time-matched session of heavy load resistance training in overweight women (BMI >= 25.0). Methods Eighteen women participated in the study (mean age 35.4 years +/- 10.2, BMI 30.4 kg/m(2)+/- 4.8), 10 exercising BodyPump (50-100 repetitions each muscle group) and eight performed a heavy load session (eight repetition maximum x three sets). The energy expenditure was assessed with indirect calorimetry during the sessions and for two intervals at rest during the recovery phase: 0-20 and 120-140 min after the sessions. Results The BodyPump group lifted significantly more loads than the heavy load group (19,485 kg +/- 2258 vs 15,616 kg +/- 2976,p= 0.006), while energy expenditure was similar with 302 kcal +/- 67 and 289 kcal +/- 69 in BodyPump and heavy load group, respectively (p= 0.69). With no group differences, the resting metabolic rate (RMR) was elevated with 15-22% 2 h after exercise. Conclusion Overweight women achieved an energy expenditure of approximately 300 kcal (4.7 kcal per min) during a single session of BodyPump, which was similar with the women performing a single session of heavy load resistance exercise.