Should You Wait For Weight Loss?

February 20, 2023 Ashley 0 Comments

If you’re well on your weight loss path, you may have discovered that “sweet spot” by now.

You know – that perfect time of day that feels best to exercise.

For some of us, it’s at zero dark birdies-haven’t-even-started-chirping-yet.

For others, it’s that post work pump – to work out the aggression work has generated all day.

However, according to science, there may be a biological sweet spot for when your body optimizes burn. Indeed, research has shown that we tend to use up the most calories from 4 P.M. to 6 P.M. Contrarily, we burn the least an exact twelve hours prior – in the 4 A.M. to 6 A.M. window. These research efforts even tried to “confuse” the body by mixing up meal time, sleep time, and other factors. However, in each case, these hours still seemed to generally be when people expended their least and most calories. So, just how much was it? The difference burnt between those late day hours and early morning is a full ten percent. In the afternoon, we blast our max calories. However, in the study, that level of burn happened regardless of what subjects were doing. Obviously, if you’re working out, you’ll burn extra whatever calories you would burn from said workout in addition to that extra ten percent. However, the fact that you burn more at that time of day does not necessarily mean you’ll get even more out of your sweat session itself than usual. In studies, it didn’t correlate with an increase in caloric burn. There’s what you’d burn that time of day. There’s what you’d get from that workout. But there’s no “extra credit” for doing said workout then versus first thing in the morning.

Now, does that mean don’t work out at that time of day?

Not necessarily. It just means you don’t have to switch your workout routine. (Good news, right?) Sometimes an afternoon workout will encourage superior supper choices, help after afternoon snacking seem less appealing, and improve sleep. (That last one also makes for more weight loss inasmuch as sleep deprivation increases cortisol and thus fat storage.) So, if you’re an afternoon athlete, that doesn’t need to mean any major changes. However, if you’re a “sweat before sunrise” type like myself, this could mean great things for you. If you’re working out when you tend to burn the least, you’re already doing yourself a favor. (Again, keep in mind that this doesn’t mean you’ll burn less during your exercise than in the afternoon – just that your body’s natural amount of burn is less compared to later.) What’s more, if you’re waking up that early – you’re probably getting in that body movement before you eat breakfast. This is great for weight loss because exercising in a fasted state has the potential to burn nearly 20 percent more of your fat than when your belly’s full.

And what about you graveyard shifters?

This is probably the real takeaway for the 4 – 6 rule.

No, we don’t have to change our workout time. However, A.) we might want to after reading this and B.) we may need to change our eating times a bit. For those coming home from their jobs at those wee hours and seeking a snack, you may be at a metabolic disadvantage. Studies have shown a higher rate in obesity among these employees for many reasons. Some of it is that we get increased cravings when we lose quality sleep. Some of it is because many facilities where night shifts are required don’t offer healthy meals during those hours. Also a lot of the time, these people stay too busy (because most are involved in emergency care, such as hospital workers, police, and EMTs). This means minimal time to eat a quality meal and lots of fast food. However, this study shines light on yet another reason overnight workers gain weight: eating during the hours after they get off work (when burn is at its worst and least efficient.) The advice there may be to make like the basic daytime 6 P.M. post work crowd and hit the gym to blow off some steam before breakfast and bed. To avoid getting too peckish during the late night time, having a midnight meal prior to those witching hours can both offer fuel in the tank for work as well as your workout which you save for that 4 A.M. to 6 A.M. window. By 7, you’re in the clear for a healthy meal and ready to rest.

So, the answer is: yes, you should “wait for weight loss”.

You don’t have to wait to work out (in fact, going fasted at 4 or 5 A.M. will torch more.)

But, if possible, wait to eat until you’re out of your low caloric burn time!

(As always, consult with your doctor before making any drastic lifestyle changes.)