Exercise on an Empty Stomach Helps to Burn More Fat?

This is a question I am asked on a weekly basis: “If I go for a run in the morning before breakfast, on an empty stomach will I lose weight more quickly?”

Exercising before breakfast is an approach that is widely used by body builders and is known as Cardio-Fasting and there is some evidence that it boosts fat-burning.

The theory is that the hormone that helps to prevent fat burning; insulin is at a low level when you first wake up and your first meal of the day triggers the release of insulin and fat burning is said to slow down.

Some experts say that to maximise the effects, you should include some resistance work into your training that will fully activate the body’s fat burning mechanism.

However, studies have shown that the reality is quite different: people who practice this method of weight loss are unlikely to lose weight any faster than those who eat a meal at breakfast time.

You can imagine how hungry you must be after a workout on zero calories – exercising on an empty stomach causes such hunger that these practioners probably eat more when they have finished exercising, to compensate.