Steroid hormone responses to three exercise modalities assessed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry in a randomized crossover trial.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Randomized crossover trial in humans measuring acute physiological responses
PubMed 42373698 · doi:10.1038/s41598-026-58281-9
What was done
Ten healthy adult males completed three distinct exercise sessions in a randomized crossover sequence: high-intensity intermittent exercise (HIIE; >80% VO2max), moderate-intensity continuous exercise (MICE; <65% VO2max), and whole-body resistance exercise (RE; 3 sets of 10 repetitions at 70% 1RM with 90-second rest intervals). Blood samples were collected pre-exercise, 10 minutes post-exercise, and 2 hours post-exercise to analyze blood glucose, lactate, and a profile of 16 steroid hormones using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).
What was found
The abstract reports statistical significance and directions without absolute numerical concentrations: - DHEA and androstenedione increased post-exercise after MICE (P < 0.01), HIIE (P < 0.01), and RE (P < 0.05), but fell below baseline resting values at 2 hours. - Estrone rose at 2 hours post-RE versus post-exercise (P < 0.01), and 2 hours post-HIIE versus rest (P < 0.01). - Only HIIE significantly elevated cortisol (P < 0.001) and cortisone (P < 0.01) post-exercise; cortisol dropped below resting levels by 2 hours across all modalities (P < 0.001). - Corticosterone increased after HIIE (P < 0.001, exceeding MICE P < 0.01), whereas MICE corticosterone fell below rest at 2 hours (P < 0.01). - Aldosterone increased across all modalities (P < 0.01), with larger elevations in MICE and HIIE than RE. - At 2 hours post-exercise, all modalities showed an increased testosterone:cortisol ratio (P < 0.05). - RE and HIIE altered sex hormone ratios (P < 0.05), decreasing testosterone:17β-estradiol and androgens:estrogens, while increasing estrogens:progesterone.
Why it matters
Using high-precision LC-MS/MS, this study demonstrates that acute steroid hormone dynamics and sex-hormone ratios vary substantially by exercise modality in young men, with HIIE driving the strongest acute stress response.
Limits
The study is limited by a small sample size (n = 10) and included only healthy young males, preventing generalization to females, older populations, or clinical cohorts. The abstract omits absolute hormonal concentrations, and tracking stopped at 2 hours post-exercise without assessing tissue-level receptor interactions or long-term adaptations.
Cited by
- partial Acute exercise causes circulating cortisol levels to increase by at least fourfold during and after a workout.