Mora-Rodriguez R, et al. - Researchers analyzed the link between changes in cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF; estimated by VO₂max) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) following an exercise training intervention to confirm/contradict the high association found in cross-sectional observational studies. Participants were MetS individuals (54±8 yrs old; BMI of 32±5) who were randomized (6:1 ratio) to a group that exercise-trained for 16-weeks (EXER; n=138) or a control sedentary group (CONT; n=22). Findings revealed that improvements in health risk factors were not predicted by the increases in CRF induced by the exercise-training in MetS individuals. Instead, a significant contribution of body weight loss (< 2%) to the improved MetS Z-score was highlighted and was recommended to be emphasized in exercise training programs.