Abstract
Cardiometabolic laboratory values in athletes may reflect sex, habitual training, sport energy demands, diet, hydration, and recent exercise. This study examined lipid and nitrogen-metabolite profiles across aerobic, anaerobic, and mixed-sport athletes and tested whether group patterns differed by sex. Summary data were available for 429 athletes (246 males and 183 females): aerobic (130 males, 66 females), anaerobic (25 males, 10 females), and mixed-sport (91 males, 107 females). Total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol/HDL-C ratio, urea, and uric acid were evaluated. Two-factor analyses reconstructed from cell means and standard deviations examined sex, sport category, and interaction effects. Sport category influenced every outcome (all p<.001; partial eta squared=.045-.066). Females had higher HDL-C and lower total cholesterol/HDL-C ratios, LDL-C, triglycerides, very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and uric acid than males. Significant sex-by-sport interactions occurred for triglycerides and very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (both p=.031). Aerobic groups generally showed the most favourable lipid pattern but higher urea and uric acid, whereas anaerobic athletes had the highest triglycerides and least favourable cholesterol ratios. These findings indicate that cardiometabolic results in athletes should be interpreted using sex, sport demands, recent workload, nutrition, and hydration rather than generic cut-offs alone. Prospective studies using standardized sampling and participant-level modelling are warranted.