Cardiovascular disease risk in obese adults assessed using established values for cardiorespiratory fitness

Abstract

The present study was designed to assess the risk of cardiovascular disease as determined by cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) in a large sample of inactive, obese adults. Cardiovascular disease risk was determined using published age- and sex-adjusted values for low, moderate, and high CRF from the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study (ACLS). Contrary to expectations, ACLS-CRF classifications identified approximately 60% of our inactive, obese adults as having moderate or high CRF and hence, low cardiovascular disease risk.