Blood was sampled from each subject in the seated position. Briefly, 5 mL of antecubital vein was harvested by means of venipuncture. An enzymatic assay (Jiancheng Biotech) was conducted for the immediate assessment of blood glucose (GLC), total cholesterol (TC), and triglyceride (TG). As for the remaining blood specimens, they were isolated for a 10 min period at 2000 r/min, followed by aliquoting and preservation at −80 °C to analyze serum insulin (INS) by adopting ELISA (RayBiotech). CV values within and between assays were ≤8.7% and ≤8.6% for variables.
The gradient cycling-exercise protocol initiating from 60 W (pedal frequency = 60 rpm) was adopted for determining VO2max. Power output was elevated by 40 and 20 W every 2 min for men and women until exhaustion. In our test period, HR and VO2 were determined by using an HR monitor (H12, Polar, Finland) and gas metabolism analyzer (Quark-PFT, COSMED, Rome, Italy), respectively. VO2max represented the greatest mean values in 30 s.
The gradient cycling-exercise protocol initiating from 60 W (pedal frequency = 60 rpm) was adopted for determining VO2max. Power output was elevated by 40 and 20 W every 2 min for men and women until exhaustion. In our test period, HR and VO2 were determined by using an HR monitor (H12, Polar, Finland) and gas metabolism analyzer (Quark-PFT, COSMED, Rome, Italy), respectively. VO2max represented the greatest mean values in 30 s.