The last thing in the world anyone needs is another lecture about exercise. And you’re certainly not going to get one from me.
In fact, a lot of what’s labeled as “exercise” and FORCED on us is more pain than gain. And folks are left facing injury and burnout.
Then, there are the LITERAL pains that often follow when intensity or form… or both… are mismatched to your ability.
Here are MY three pieces of advice on exercise. Do what…
- you CAN.
- you LIKE.
- FEELS right.
Whether it’s a swim (my favorite), a speed walk, a bike ride, or something else entirely, the basic rule of thumb is that if it gets you moving, it’s good. And regardless of the rumors, it DOESN’T have to hurt or leave you a trembling sweat-soaked mess to be beneficial.
Just unseating your seat and getting your heart pumping for a few minutes every day will do the trick. And new research reveals two easy ways to burn off more fat, faster than ever when you do.
Best of all? It’s WITHOUT increasing effort, intensity, or duration.
The FAT-BURNING secret to success
Timing is everything, right? It turns out that’s true for exercise, too.
If you time your session just right… in two critical ways… you can burn off up to 30 percent more fat. And again, this happens WITHOUT increasing your effort.
In the new study, volunteers were put through cycling exercises in different conditions and times of the day. The sessions took place once a week for a month. All the volunteers were hooked up to special equipment to measure what was going on in real-time.
And the researchers managed to nail what may be the PERFECT FORMULA for getting the biggest bang for your exercise effort.
It comes down to two steps:
- Exercise in the afternoon, not the morning.
- Have a little caffeine about 30 minutes beforehand.
That’s easy enough, right?
The study finds that, with or without caffeine, workouts are more efficient in the afternoon, leading to:
- MORE fat burned.
- INCREASED VO2max, a measure of overall cardiorespiratory fitness.
VO2max is the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during exercise. It’s not a number those of us who aren’t athletes are likely to need to know. But it IS a great way to judge the effectiveness of exercise.
And VO2max can be a pretty tough number to improve. Yet simply adjusting the timing of the exercise did the trick.
Making the most of exercise
The REAL game-changer, however, was that caffeine. When the volunteers downed a little of the turbo-boosting fuel just 30 minutes before their exercise, their fat-burning soared.
But the clear winner was the daytime exercise. The folks who had caffeine during the day and then worked out had an incredible 29 percent jump in fat burning.
The volunteers who had caffeine before a morning workout benefited as well, just not as dramatically. They ended up burning 10 percent more fat.
The daytime caffeine group also had a bigger improvement in their “Fatmax” score. “Fatmax” is another measure of the effects of exercise on the body’s fat-burning powers.
The researchers say this trick will be great for athletes in training. But I think it’s even better for the rest of us ordinary folks who sometimes struggle to stay fit and want to make the most of their exercise effort.
Me? I’m going for a swim right after I finish this cup of coffee. Need some inspiration to get started? Check out these exercise benefits you can get starting in as little as 1 minute and WITHOUT running yourself ragged.
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