Purpose: Myonectin is a myokine that is secreted from skeletal muscle in response to exercise and has an inverse relationship with energy metabolism and the metabolic state of the body. Therefore, the aim of this study was the effect of exercise training on myonectin and insulin resistance in overweight and obese people.

Methods: A systematic search for relevant studies was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, SID, Magiran, Scopus, and Google scholar databases for English and Persian articles up to (27 June 2024) for studies of exercise training on myonectin and insulin resistance in overweight and obese individuals. Effect sizes and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a random-effects model.

Results: In total, 9 studies on 291 overweight and obese subjects were meta-analyzed, the results showed that exercise training in overweight and obese subjects caused a non-significant increase in myonectin [WMD= 4.572 (10.680 to -1.536), P=0.142] and a significant reduction in insulin resistance [WMD= -0.726 (-0.553 to -0.899), P=0.001] Compared to the control group, it became overweight and obese.

Conclusions: Although most studies have shown that exercise increases myonectin and reduces insulin resistance, it seems that the mechanism of changes in myonectin and insulin resistance following different exercise programs in overweight and obese individuals may be different. Therefore, exercise, with its effective effect on increasing myonectin and reducing insulin resistance, may be an appropriate and efficient method for increasing myonectin and reducing insulin resistance in overweight and obese.