Study aim: To assess the effects of aerobic training on body fat content and serum lipid profile.

Material and methods: A group of 45 male members of Brazilian Military Police Academy, aged 18 - 32 years, were subjected randomly assigned into 3 subgroups and to 12-week programmes: aerobic fatmax zone training (FG; n = 18), traditional military training (TM; n = 15) and non-training control group (C; n = 12). Body fat content (3 skinfolds), serum lipid profile (total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and triglycerides), waist circumference (WC) and O₂max (12-min test) were determined.

Results: O₂max significantly (p<0.05) increased and body fat content decreased in both experimental group compared with the control one. Significant (p<0.05) reductions in WC and LDL vs. control group were observed in the TM group only.

Conclusions: The applied aerobic training induced a decrease in percent body fat irrespectively of the kind of training.