The purpose of the study was to examine the efficacy of 8 weeks of protein supplementation plus hyper-caloric intake and resistance training on hypertrophy, hormones, and energy components of underweight males. One hundred sixty-seven underweight males from Dhahran region aged 18 to 20 years with BMI of less than 18.5 Kg/m2 were divided into protein supplementation with hyper-caloric intake and resistance training group 1 (G-1, n =21), the resistance training group 2 (G-2, n=48), protein supplementation group 3 (G-3, n=32) and a control group 4 (G-4, n=38). The subjects were measured before and after the training Physical Characteristics (PC) [body mass (BM), optimal body mass (OBM), height (H), body mass index (BMI), percent body fat (%BF), fat-free mass (FFM)], hormones [Triiodothyronine (FT3), Thyroxine (FT4), Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), cortisol and testosterone], energy components, food intake (FI), energy needs (EN) and 1Resistance Maximum (1RM) tests [leg press (LP), chest press (CP) and abdomen press (ABDO)]. The resistance training (RT) was for 8 weeks, twice per week 30 minutes per session for G-1 and G-2. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 20.0 software. Mean and the standard deviation was calculated for all subjects. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was utilized to compare the mean differences between groups and the level was at P≤0.05. The results showed that BM and FFM had main effects for time and interaction effects for a time by groups (P<0.05) but not for groups (P>0.05). In 1RM strength tests for LP, CP, and ABDO there were main effects for the time, groups, and interaction effects for time for groups (P<0.05). FT3 and FT4 showed main effects for time only (P<0.05) but TSH, CORTI, and TESTO did show any changes. FI showed main effects for the time, groups, and interaction effects for a time by groups (P<0.05). It was concluded that the intervention program helps in gaining bodyweight and increasing the fat-free mass. Besides, the resistance training aided to raise the strength, food intake with no changes in the hormones.
IJPRAS
