Exercise On An Empty Stomach Burns More Fat
Exercise on an empty stomach enhances the health benefits of exercise, according to a study on how meal timing, metabolic health, and exercise interact. The study, which looked at sedentary men who received moderate cycling exercise, suggests that whether and when we eat may influence the effects of exercise.
In general, any exercise is good for our health. However, there is a great deal of recent science and personal experience that shows that different people respond differently to similar forms of exercise. Even when everyone completes the same amount of exercise, some people are healthier than others, lose more weight, or have better control over their blood sugar.
Most exercise scientists believe that our genetics, diet, body type, temperament, and other subtle aspects of our lives combine to influence how our bodies respond to exercise.
But some researchers suspect that meal timing is also essential. During exercise, exercising muscles need fuel – primarily in the form of burning sugar (glucose) or fat. This fuel can come from recently eaten foods or fat and sugar stored in our bodies. All of us have fat stores, some of which are hidden in our muscles.
If too much accumulates, this muscle fat can cause problems. Too much fat can lead to insulin resistance, high blood sugar, and an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and other metabolic diseases.
So researchers at the University of Bath and other institutions in the U.K. began to wonder whether meal timing affects how much muscle fat we can burn during exercise and, in turn, the long-term metabolic consequences of exercise.
The researchers recruited 30 sedentary, overweight men, tested their health and insulin sensitivity, and then divided them into three groups.
As a control group, one group continued their routine, while the other two groups exercised three times a week in the morning: one group drank a vanilla shake for breakfast two hours before cycling, while the other group consumed a similarly flavored placebo drink that contained water, flavorings, but no calories. In other words, the placebo group rode the bike on an empty stomach, but they didn’t know it. And after the exercise, everyone got the kind of drink they hadn’t had before.
The experiment lasted six weeks, during which time the scientists constantly monitored their heart rhythms and the amount of fat and sugar they burned. Afterward, the scientists analyzed the numbers and found some significant differences. As expected, men’s health improved in both exercise groups, but the placebo group that rode on an empty stomach burned twice as much fat per ride as the shaken group. They burned roughly the same number of calories during the ride, but the fasting group burned more calories from fat.
Overall, these findings suggest that “you can get more benefit from exercise by exercising before breakfast without increasing the intensity or duration,” said Javier Gonzalez, a professor of physiology and nutrition at the University of Bath. He suggests that individuals can schedule exercise to fit their schedules and personal preferences and that even if they can’t get up early and exercise on an empty stomach, exercise is better than no exercise at all.