Does regular exercise help you burn more fat, even hours after your workout is over? Although a metabolism boost is touted as one of the benefits of physical activity, a new report says that exercisers won't burn more fat after a workout compared to days when they don't exercise. The report, published in the journal Exercise and Sport Science Reviews, studied people who did a moderate-intensity workout, high-intensity workout or no workout at all (on separate days). They also compared people of different age groups and those who were competitive athletes, versus sedentary obese and sedentary lean individuals. Throughout all of these comparisons, one result was consistent: There seemed to be no difference in how much fat participants burned 24 hours after a workout, compared to days when they didn't exercise. This study looked at workouts that were under one hour in length, so researchers can't be sure that longer, more intense workouts would produce the same results. The study also discusses the popular belief that weight training dramatically increases metabolism. A pound of muscle does burn more calories at rest than a pound of fat. But most people don't put on enough muscle to make enough of a difference. For instance, if someone gained 4-5 pounds of muscle, that only translates to an additional 28-50 calories burned per day. So does this mean you should just become a couch potato? Not at all. Exercise can play an important role in weight loss, which ideally comes from a combination of diet and regular activity. Exercise will help you maintain the weight you've lost, and helps reduce the risk of certain diseases like heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. It also has mental benefits like reduced stress, more energy and better sleep. Just don't think you can eat a big piece of cake after a workout because you'll burn it right off. When it comes to weight loss, have you found that diet or exercise is more important? Or is it a combination of the two that have helped you? |
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