RISE AND SHINE

DOES THE EARLY BIRD BURN MORE CALORIES? HERE’S WHY SOME EXPERTS RECOMMEND A PRE-BREAKFAST WORKOUT

Running out the door for a cardio session before breakfast may actually be the key to moving those excess kilos.

After a night without eating, our blood sugar and glycogen levels drop, making it the perfect environment for your body to learn how to metabolise fat.

Resisting the urge to eat upon waking and taking the opportunity to work out on an empty stomach is a great way to force your body to tap into its fat reserves while insulin levels are low.

Think of it this way: if you have just tucked into a high-calorie energy drink before you work out (or while) then this is what your body is going to call upon for fuel.

On the other hand, if there is nothing in quick reserve (glycogen) then the next best thing is fat oxidation. It’s not just about the fact our insulin levels are low, but our growth hormones work in opposition to these levels, making them high in the morning before we eat. And why is this good? Well, growth hormones help to break down fat cells and they are at their highest during this time.

All sounds great doesn’t it, but many don’t believe in this strategy and here’s why.

There is an argument to say that it’s more beneficial to maximise fat oxidation after exercise, rather than spending endless hours burning fat during exercise with steady, low-moderate intensity exercise (which can be done through high-intensity interval training).

Other research has shown that the intake of carbohydrate-rich meals before and after a highintensity, exhaustive workout maximised the use of fat for energy after the workout, while carbohydrates were being used to restore glycogen.

Simply put, it comes down to the fact that as long as you burn more calories than you consume in a day it doesn’t matter if you use fat or carbohydrates as an energy source.

Personally, I love the feeling of squeezing in a workout before sunrise and kick-starting my metabolism, but in saying that I also feel my appetite increases if I exercise in the morning, leading me to be hungry for lunch a lot earlier (and susceptible to mindless snacking).

Working out in the morning can also lend itself to the possibility of sneaking in another workout in the evening, whether it is resistance training or stretch based, which adds to the total number of expended calories for the day

It’s a “horses for courses” topic, with some people not feeling like they have the energy in the mornings to exercise without eating first.

There really is no point just going through the motions if you feel you could get more bang for your buck later in the day after a pep up with food in the belly (and you’re not using it as an excuse!).

For those that are struggling to burn fat in stubborn areas, perhaps it’s worthwhile to make time for a cardio-based session before breakfast. If all else fails, it will help you create energy and a clearer mindset to go about the rest of your day.

“I LOVE THE FEELING OF SQUEEZING IN A WORKOUT BEFORE SUNRISE AND KICKSTARTING MY METABOLISM.”