Summary: In a four-arm trial in men with obesity, 12 weeks of high-intensity functional training improved adipo-myokines, body composition, lipids, and insulin sensitivity, while added spinach thylakoid supplementation gave only modest, non-superior effects on select myokines.
PICO Summary
| Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Population | 60 men with obesity (mean age 27.6, BMI 32.6); four arms, 27% attrition (per-protocol and ITT analyses). |
| Intervention | 12 weeks of high-intensity functional training (3x/week) with or without spinach thylakoid supplementation. |
| Comparison | Placebo, supplement alone, training plus placebo, or training plus supplement. |
| Outcome | Both training groups improved adipo-myokines, body composition, lipids, and insulin resistance versus non-exercising groups (p<0.05). No significant difference between training-plus-supplement and training-plus-placebo on systemic markers; thylakoids gave only exploratory effects on decorin and follistatin. |
Spinach thylakoids + functional training in obesity
RCT · men with obesity · 12 weeks
Training drove the metabolic gains: significant reductions in fasting insulin, body fat, and HOMA-IR versus placebo. Adding spinach thylakoid gave no systemic benefit over training alone.
Expert Commentary
This is the third combination trial of this shape I would assess the same way, and the four-arm design once again earns its keep by isolating what the supplement adds beyond exercise, which here is very little. Both training arms improved body composition, lipids, insulin sensitivity, and the adipo-myokine network, while spinach thylakoids produced no significant edge on the systemic markers and only exploratory wiggles in decorin and follistatin. The honest headline is that exercise is the active ingredient and the supplement is along for the ride. I hold even the exercise findings at the level they belong, mechanistic myokine biomarkers in sixty young men over twelve weeks with a hefty 27% dropout, not clinical outcomes. Can I use this with my patients? The exercise message, yes, high-intensity functional training meaningfully improves the metabolic profile of men with obesity, and I would prescribe activity confidently. Spinach thylakoid supplements I would not recommend, since this trial gives no good reason to expect benefit over training alone. A larger, longer study with clinical endpoints would be needed before the supplement merited any place.
References
Razi O, Shafei A, Abdi M, et al. Adipo-myokine modulation in obesity: integrative effects of spinach thylakoids and functional training in men with obesity: a randomized controlled clinical trial. Nutrients. 2026;18(3):509. doi:10.3390/nu18030509