Oxidation of nonplasma fatty acids during exercise is increased in women with abdominal obesity

We evaluated plasma fatty acid availability and plasma and whole body fatty acid oxidation during exercise in five lean and five abdominally obese women (body mass index = 21 ± 1 vs. 38 ± 1 kg/m²), who were matched on aerobic fitness, to test the hypothesis that obesity alters the relative contribution of plasma and nonplasma fatty acids to total energy production during exercise. Subjects exercised on a recumbent cycle ergometer for 90 min at 54% of their peak oxygen consumption. Stable isotope tracer methods ([¹³C]palmitate) were used to measure fatty acid rate of appearance in plasma and the rate of plasma fatty acid oxidation, and indirect calorimetry was used to measure whole body substrate oxidation. During exercise, palmitate rate of appearance increased progressively and was similar in obese and lean groups between 60 and 90 min of exercise [3.9 ± 0.4 vs. 4.0 ± 0.3 μmol·kg fat free mass (FFM)^-1·min^-1]. The rate of plasma fatty acid oxidation was also similar in obese and lean subjects (12.8 ± 1.7 vs. 14.5 ± 1.8 μmol·kg FFM^-1·min^-1; P = not significant). However, whole body fatty acid oxidation during exercise was 25% greater in obese than in lean subjects (21.9 ± 1.2 vs. 17.5 ± 1.6 μmol·kg FFM^-1·min^-1; P < 0.05). These results demonstrate that, although plasma fatty acid availability and oxidation are similar during exercise in lean and obese women, women with abdominal obesity use more fat as a fuel by oxidizing more nonplasma fatty acids.