Women: Lose Fat with Resistance Training and Milk

The Exercise Metabolism Research Group of the Department of Kinesiology and McMaster University in Ontario, Canada, set out to study the relationship between body composition and strength changes associated with milk and resistance exercise for women. The Department had already completed a study that showed that milk combined with resistance training increased muscle mass and increased fat loss for men, so this study aimed to show whether these benefits also applied to women.

The researchers; AR Josse, JE Tang, MA Tarnopolsky and SM Phillips conducted the study, involving 20 women split into two groups. Both groups exercised five days per week for 12 weeks. The training involved resistance exercises that included upper body pushing, upper body pulling and a variety of leg exercises. Personal trainers assisted the study participants with exercise routines and technique during the study. Immediately after training, one group drank 500ml of fat-free milk, the other group drank an isoenergetic carbohydrate drink (similar to a sports drink). The women drank another glass at the one-hour post-exercise mark.

The results showed that the women who drank the milk gained less weight than the sports drink group (0.5kg vs. 0.86kg), only the women who drank the milk lost fat mass, and the milk group had a greater increase in isotonic strength than the sports drink group.

According to ScienceDaily, "We expected the gains in muscle mass to be greater, but the size of the fat loss surprised us," says Phillips. "We're still not sure what causes this but we're investigating that now. It could be the combination of calcium, high-quality protein, and vitamin D may be the key, and. conveniently, all of these nutrients are in milk.

The conclusion of the study: "Heavy, whole-body resistance exercise with the consumption of milk versus carbohydrate in the early postexercise period resulted in greater muscle mass accretion, strength gains, fat mass loss, and a possible reduction in bone turnover in women after 12 wk. Our results, similar to those in men, highlight that milk is an effective drink to support favorable body composition changes in women with resistance training. "

While many women avoid weight training because they fear bulking up and becoming too muscular, and avoid drinking milk because of its fat content, they are missing out on both counts. By combining resistance training and drinking a glass of milk, many women could shed their unwanted excess weight.

Science Daily: Milk: Two glasses a day tones muscles, keep the fat away in women, study shows
PubMed: Body composition and strength changes in women with milk and resistance exercise.