Metabolomic signatures of high-intensity and sprint interval exercise/training in humans: a systematic review

A total of 20 studies met the inclusion criteria, with a variety of participants, biological samples, sampling procedures, and metabolomic analysis techniques. Pathway analysis revealed that the affected pathways were mostly related to carbohydrate, lipid, and amino acid metabolism. The tricarboxylic acid cycle and purine degradation were also considerably affected. Most metabolites were upregulated by HIIE/HIIT and SIE/SIT. Our analysis revealed strong and wide metabolomic changes with HIIE/HIIT or SIE/SIT, with substrate utilization for energy production emerging as a recurring theme. Such results suggest that the metabolic changes caused by exercise cannot be covered by a single analytical technology and underline the importance of reproducibility and the need for better control of modulating/confounding factors in future studies.