The relationship of adipose tissue insulin resistance (AT-IR, a product of fasting insulin and free fatty acids) and homeostasis-model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) to beta-cell function was studied cross-sectionally in the setting of subtle glucose dysregulation. Associations of AT-IR and HOMA-IR with fasting and post-glucose glycemia and beta-cell function inferred from serum insulin kinetics during a 75 g oral glucose tolerance test were studied in 168 young female Japanese students. beta-cell function was evaluated by disposition index calculated as a product of the insulinogenic index (IGI) and Matsuda index. AT-IR, not HOMA-IR, showed positive associations with post-glucose glycemia and area under the glucose response curve although both indices were associated with fasting glycemia. HOMA-IR, not AT-IR, was associated positively with log IGI whereas both indices were inversely associated with Matsuda index. AT-IR, not HOMA-IR, showed inverse associations with log disposition index. Associations of adipose tissue insulin resistance with beta-cell function (inverse) and glucose excursion in young Japanese women may suggest that lipotoxicity to pancreatic beta-cells for decades may be associated with beta cell dysfunction found in Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes. Positive association of HOMA-IR with insulinogenic index may be associated with compensatory increased insulin secretion.