Exercise training is advocated in
insulin resistance and
statins are used to treat hyperlipidaemia, two cardiometabolic risk factors often presenting concurrently.
Statin intake may blunt mitochondrial function and the adaptive response to exercise training. Thus combining exercise training with
statin administration may have adverse effects. We examined whether improvements in cardiometabolic risk factors,
insulin sensitivity and mitochondrial function mediated by progressive exercise training are affected by
statin use. A group of 14 obese elderly males on
statins (ST) and 22 matched control subjects (C) were examined. Results on in vivo mitochondrial function [MRS (magnetic resonance spectroscopy)], mitochondrial density (Western blotting),
insulin sensitivity (clamp) and metabolic flexibility (indirect calorimetry) were compared before and after a 12-week combined progressive exercise training programme (3 x per week; 45 min per session). Except for
LDL (
low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, all pre-training values were comparable between
statin users and control subjects. In vivo mitochondrial function and mitochondrial density improved by training in both groups. Interestingly, blood-
lipid profile,
insulin sensitivity (+72%), non-oxidative and oxidative
glucose disposal (+38% and +112%) and
insulin-mediated suppression of fat oxidation (-62%) improved only in the ST group. We conclude that
statin treatment did not impede exercise performance or tolerance, mitochondrial function or mass. In addition, training-induced improvements in
glucose homoeostasis were preserved in the ST group. Strikingly, the
insulin-sensitizing effect of training was more prominent in the ST group than in the C group. The combined prescription of
statins along with exercise training is safe and should be considered for subjects prone to develop
insulin resistance.