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Detailed Body Composition Analysis on Female Rats Subjected to a Program of Swimming¹

Department of Preventive Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110

Previous studies have shown that animals subjected to programs of prolonged endurance exercise have a greater lean body mass than sedentary animals of the same age and body weight. The present study was performed to determine which tissues and body components contribute to the greater lean body mass of female rats subjected to a program of swimming as compared to sedentary animals of the same body weight. Compared to the sedentary controls, the carcasses of the swimmers, after 21 weeks on the swimming program, contained approximately 20 g more lean tissue. The tissue groups contributing to the greater lean body mass were: a) the skin and subcutaneous tissue (3.67 g); b) the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and blood (4.68 g); c) the intestinal tract, pancreas, uterus, ovaries, mesentary, omentum, and retroperitoneal adipose tissue (4.37 g); d) tail (0.67 g); e) the eviscerated carcass, consisting of the head and neck, spine, ribcage, clavicles, pelvis, and remaining attached musculature, after removal of the front and hind-limb units with attached shoulder and pelvic girdle muscles (6.75 g). There was no hypertrophy of the limb and girdle muscles directly involved in the swimming.

KEY WORDS: • body composition • exercise • lean body mass • appetite

¹ Supported by Public Health Service Research Grant HD01613 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and by Training Grant AM05341 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Metabolic Diseases.

² Dr. Oscal was a Post-doctoral Research Trainee supported by U.S. Public Health Service Training Grant AM05341. His present address is: University of Illinois at Chicago Circle, Box 4848, Chicago, Illinois 60680.

³ Dr. Molé was a Post-doctoral Research Trainee supported by U.S. Public Health Service Training Grant AM05341. His present address is: Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122.

⁴ L. M. Krusack was a Student Summer Research Fellow supported by U.S. Public Health Service Grant 5-T5-GM-1608-10.

⁵ Dr. Hollossy is the recipient of U.S. Public Health Service Research Career Development Award K4-HD19578.

Manuscript received 23 August 1972.