SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Physiol.
Sec. Exercise Physiology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fphys.2025.1609818
The Effect of High-Intensity Interval Training on Health-Related Outcomes in Obese Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Provisionally accepted
- 1Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Zigong, China
- 2University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, United States
- 3Shangrao Normal University, Shangrao, Jiangxi Province, China
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The present research was to evaluate the impacts of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) intervention on health-related outcomes in obese adolescents, adopting a systematic review and meta-analysis.The study was performed by searching four databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and Cochrane Library) to determine randomized controlled trials (RCTs) exploring the impacts of HIIT to physiological parameters among obese adolescents. The sequential execution of a meta-analyses, subgroup analyses, and publication bias analyses was accomplished utilizing the software package RevMan version 5.4 and Stata 18. Results: There were 11 articles included. This research demonstrated a significant impact on body fat percentage (BFP) with d = -0.82, P < 0.05; VO2peak with d = 2.99, P < 0.05; high density lipoprotein (HDL) with I² = 22.8%, SMD = 0.47, 95% CI [0.06 to 0.88]; systolic blood pressure (SBP) with I² = 0.3%, SMD = -0.93, 95% CI [-1.25 to -0.62] . However, there was lacking of significance of body mass index (BMI) d=-0.21, P=0. The subgroup analyses revealed that HIIT interventions involving with twice per week, 30-60 minutes per session, 1-30 minutes per session were the most effective in improving BMI, BFP and VO2peak. Conclusion: HIIT intervention, its impact on BMI is minimal, HIIT significantly reduces BFP, enhances VO₂peak, increases HDL levels, and lowers SBP. HIIT effectively enhances body composition and cardiovascular health in overweight adolescents. Future studies should aim to refine HIIT protocols and explore its long-term benefits to establish comprehensive exercise recommendations for this population.
Keywords: High-intensity interval training, Health-related outcomes, Obese adolescents, Systematic review, Meta-analysis
Received: 14 Apr 2025; Accepted: 14 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 XU, Li, Yang and Yu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
GANG XU, Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Zigong, China
Hongli Yu, Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, Zigong, China
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