Sometimes we equate the amount of exercise we do to the amount of food we can eat. We’ll often catch ourselves saying, man I really “worked up quite an appetite.” Do you think that’s true? Did you really work up an appetite?
Here’s another question, what are your food choices like on the days that you don’t exercise? I think for a lot people, myself included, exercising first thing in the morning sets the day. It seems exercising in the morning promotes healthier choices through the day.
New research out of Brigham Young University shows that 45 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise in the morning actually reduces a person’s motivation for food.
The study, published online, in the Fall 2012 issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, measured the food motivation of 18 normal weight women and 17 clinically obese women over two separate days. The first day the woman exercised and were then shown images of 120 plated meals and 120 flowers (the control group). What they were measuring was increased neural activity. A week later they performed the same test without the exercise. What they found is that out of all 35 women, the response to the food pictures decreased after the workout day in comparison to their response on a day without exercise.
Test for yourself… check your food log on the days you don’t exercise and see if you find a pattern.
Citation: BYU study says exercise may reduce motivation for food. Brigham Young University. September 2012. March 2013.
Amen! I think it is true that most of us make better choices throughout the day when we have worked out in the morning. I know it works for me!
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