A small study published in the UK has finally answered the seemingly unending debate on whether to eat before or after exercising in the morning. For those who don't know, the eat-first camp says food before exercise boosts blood sugars, giving the body fuel to increase the intensity and length of a workout. The eat-after camp, meanwhile, says you burn more fat if you fast before exercise.
The study which was published recently revealed that those who exercised before breakfast burned twice the fat as men who ate breakfast before they worked out. It its research, it found 30 obese or overweight men, who exercised before breakfast burned twice the fat as men who ate breakfast before they worked out. It revealed exercising with no fuel forces the body to turn to stored carbs, and when those are quickly gone, to fat cells.
Meanwhile, the eat-after group didn't lose more weight than the eat-before group during the six weeks of the study, but it did have “profound and positive” effects on the health of the group that fasted. Skipping the meal before exercise made the men's muscle more responsive to insulin, which controls high blood sugars, thus reducing the risk for diabetes and heart disease.
Exercise physiologist Javier Gonzalez said, “The group who exercised before breakfast increased their ability to respond to insulin, which is all the more remarkable given that both exercise groups lost a similar amount of weight and both gained a similar amount of fitness. The only difference was the timing of the food intake.”
In case you choose to work out an empty stomach, there are certain tips to keep in mind. These include, the four 'R's of recovery – rehydrate, replenish, repair, and reinforce. Eat a meal with a 4:1 carb to high quality protein ratio. There are some good choices, including fruit and low-fat Greek yogurt, trail mix, or a banana with peanut butter.
