The effects of 10 weeks of reforestation work on body composition.

Objective: To document changes in body composition and body mass in male and female tree planters.

Methods: Height, mass, skin-fold thickness, and limb girths were measured in 17 male and 5 female tree planters before and after 10 weeks of work.

Results: Significant decreases were found in body mass (80.6 +/- 10.7 kg vs 76.8 +/- 8.5 kg) and body fat (13.3% +/- 5.5% vs. 10.4% +/- 5.0%) in the men (P < .05). No changes in skin-fold-corrected limb girths were found in the men or women. Initial body mass was significantly (P < .05) correlated with mass loss in men (r2 = .46) and women (r2 = .67). Estimated daily energy consumption was 20680.1 +/- 2204.5 kJ for men and 14516.6 +/- 2077.3 kJ for women, and estimated daily fat consumption was 194.2 +/- 30.1 g for men and 132.3 +/- 35.6 g for women.

Conclusions: Ten weeks of tree planting leads to significant decreases in body mass and body fat in men while maintaining skin-fold-corrected limb girths.