I think OPs summary is a bit inaccurate. Regular working out is not the issue in my understand. When you start working out after a long break, some of the AST ALT stored in your skeletal muscles gets released as the muscles undergo some breakdown, and this is most common with weight training, not cardio. This is what elevates the bloodstream levels. Once you have worked out for a few weeks it stabilizes to regular levels.
So don't get your liver enzymes tested just a week after starting to do weight training.
> This reads as if the general population doesn't work out
Regardless of the liver enzyme detail, this isn't too far from the truth. And even those who work out usually do cardio, not weight training.
One hour workouts 4x a week with a personal trainer. I only started working out a year ago, but these blood tests were done after I had been working out 8-9 months, not just restarting after a rest as many have mentioned.
The tests in the articles are on people who just started weightlifting, but I did not see any testing of people used to weightlifting. From what I read, it sounds like the enzyme levels are higher because of the muscle damage caused by weightlifting. If that's the case, it doesn't make sense to me that the enzymes would become normal after weightlifting for a while, because you're still going to be damaging and repairing the muscles every week.
So don't get your liver enzymes tested just a week after starting to do weight training.
> This reads as if the general population doesn't work out
Regardless of the liver enzyme detail, this isn't too far from the truth. And even those who work out usually do cardio, not weight training.