Are Morning Workouts Best for Burning Fat? Study Provides Answers

The AHA! Team — Wed, 27 Nov 2024 06:21:36 +0000

Joe Boland via Dr. Axe – If you’re like a lot of people out there, you probably wonder what the optimal time of day for exercise is. The answer depends on many factors, but if you’re looking to burn fat, new research suggests morning workouts may be your best bet. Study: Workout Time and Burning Fat Researchers from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the University of Copenhagen in Denmark sought to determine how working out at different times of day affected post-exercise metabolism and fat-burning (aka the afterburn effect). They did this by examining physical activity in mice at various times of day. Why mice? Because, as described in an accompanying press release on the study, “mice and humans share many basic physiological functions, and mice are a well-established model for human physiology and metabolism.” Ultimately, researchers wanted to find out the optimal time of day to exercise in order to amp up fat-burning. They did this by studying the adipose tissue in the mice after two sessions of high-intensity exercise — one performed at an early active phase (equivalent of late morning in humans) and one at early rest phases (equivalent of late evening in humans). They found that “physical activity at an early active phase increased the expression of genes involved in the breakdown of adipose tissue, thermogenesis (heat production) and mitochondria in the adipose tissue, indicating a higher metabolic rate. These effects were observed only in mice that exercised in the early active phase and were independent of food intake.” A higher metabolic rate, of course, helps burn fat more than lower a metabolic rate, meaning morning workouts may help amp up your ability to burn fat. ”Our results suggest that late-morning exercise could be more effective than late evening exercise in terms of boosting the metabolism and the burning of fat, and if this is the case, they could prove of value to people who are overweight,” said professor Juleen R. Zierath from the Department of Molecular Medicine and Surgery and the Department of Physiology and Pharmacology at the Karolinska Institutet in the release. Zierath added: “The right timing seems to be important to the body’s energy balance and to improving the health benefits of exercise, but more studies are needed to draw any reliable conclusions about the relevance of our findings to humans.” Other Fat-Burning Tips While this is promising research and could encourage people to exercise early in the day, the truth is exercise at any time of day is beneficial. In fact, starting a fitness routine that works for you and your schedule is important. If that means working out in the afternoon, evening or night fits into your life better than morning, you should get your workouts in then instead. If burning fat is your ultimate goal, here are some ways to enhance your ability to lose belly fat and fat in other areas: Take advantage of natural metabolism boosters, such as getting plenty of sleep and rest, trying high-intensity interval training (HIIT), lifting weights, and avoiding inflammatory foods. Work out on an empty stomach. Add natural fat burners to your routine, such as conjugated linoleic acid, green coffee beans, grapefruit essential oil, green tea and other herbal teas, protein supplements and foods, and probiotic foods and supplements. Consume more fat-burning foods, such as high-fiber foods, apple cider vinegar, bone broth and many more. Incorporate more fat-burning workouts, including Tabata, HIIT, barre, CrossFit, spinning/cycling, cross-country skiing, sprinting, elliptical exercises, burst training, rowing and swimming. Playing sports like football, basketball, soccer and volleyball also is great for burning fat. Eat a healthy diet, and avoid unhealthy, processed foods. To read the original article click here.

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How to Optimize Mental Clarity, Focus, Memory & Mood by Monitoring Your Glucose

AHA Publisher — Thu, 04 Feb 2021 08:00:57 +0000

Dr. Caroline Leaf – In this podcast (episode #250) and blog, I speak with Josh Clemente, one of the founders of Levels, an amazing company that developed a smart tracker that monitors your blood glucose in real time, so you can maximize your diet, exercise, mental health and overall wellbeing. Josh and I discuss the importance of tracking your glucose levels, how to know what changes to make based on the data, techniques to balance glucose levels and increase metabolic flexibility, how sleep affects glucose levels, how to use a glucose monitor to improve mental health and decrease the risk for neurodegenerative diseases, and so much more! Plus, I share how I used a Neurocycle to lower a stress-induced glucose spike! Over the past several weeks, I have used the Levels monitor daily, and I can honestly say it has changed the way I see my health and live my life on a day-to-day basis. It has made it more fun to experiment and see, in real time, how my lifestyle choices impact my biology and mental state, including how my 5-step mind management technique (the Neurocycle, which I discuss in detail in my upcoming book Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess) impacts my physical health. For example, I noticed that when I didn’t manage my stress, my blood glucose levels went crazy, and I experienced a type of “fogginess” in my mind and body! However, when I got my mind back under control using the Neurocycle, I was able to manage my stress, and my blood glucose levels went back to a healthy level. I felt “human” again! But why exactly are our blood glucose levels so important? As Josh notes, our metabolism regulates our sleep, our appetite, our weight, our energy levels AND our brain and mental health, so it is incredibly important. Levels essentially helps you maximize your unique metabolic health so you can live a longer, fuller, healthier life, mentally and physically! It teaches you how to get the most out of your body by knowing how to fuel it, showing you what impacts your energy levels and ability to function mentally and physically. When it comes our mental health, research has actually shown that when we monitor our glucose levels on a regular basis and make better lifestyle choices based on our unique data, we can improve our clarity, mood, and ability to focus and make new, healthy memories. This is not surprising, as erratic glucose levels can cause havoc in the brain, potentially setting us up for cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s! Just as putting bad fuel in a car can damage it, not fueling the brain correctly can cause all sorts of issues, including insulin resistance and chronic inflammation. Levels essentially provides a series of objective data points over time to help you track how your body is functioning and what you can do to improve your overall health. With Levels, you don’t just have to make a healthy choice and hope for the best—you can see, based on the data, how that choice is affecting you individually within the context of what Josh calls the “system” of your life. Of course, this kind of data is very important for people that need constant glucose monitoring, like someone diagnosed with diabetes. However, it is also helpful for people who just want to make better health decisions based on how their body is functioning moment-by-moment to help prevent the onset of chronic health issues. As they say, prevention is the best medicine, and glucose monitoring is one important way to see what we can do to prevent disease and improve our overall health! To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Leaf click here.

The post How to Optimize Mental Clarity, Focus, Memory & Mood by Monitoring Your Glucose appeared first on Amazing Health Advances.

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Are Morning Workouts Best for Burning Fat? Study Provides Answers

How to Optimize Mental Clarity, Focus, Memory & Mood by Monitoring Your Glucose