Metabolising gluttony
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Metabolising Gluttony: A prolonged workout beforehand can help to metabolise the occasional gluttony
Even athletes have to admit that a plate of fish and chips, a slice of chocolate cake or the crust of a steak and kidney pie sometimes look pretty tempting, even though you know that some of the fat in those wonderful comestibles will be immediately tucked away in your thighs or midsection, where it can slow down your race times. Worse yet, a bit of the tallow may insinuate itself s into the walls of your coronary arteries, weakening your heart and increasing your risk of cardiovascular problems.
Since your will to resist super-rich foods weakens from time to time, what can you do? According to researchers at Loughborough University, the solution to your lack of resolution may be to occasionally exercise lightly for prolonged
periods. More specifically, the new research suggests that a lengthy exertion during the day before the consumption of a high-fat meal may increase your muscles' ability to metabolize the fat on your platter. Since your muscles are metabolizing more fat, less fat should be able to slip into your arterial walls or the fat cells lining your abdomen.
At Loughborough, six males and six females exercised at a low intensity of 31% V02max (about 50 per cent of maximal heart rate) for two hours and then - 15 hours later - consumed a high-fat meal which offered 1.2 grams of fat per kilogram of body weight. That meant that a 1 54-pound person swallowed 84 grams of fat, or a rather lofty 756 calories of blubber. On a separate occasion, the subjects again consumed the enhanced-fat meal, but without the preceding prolonged workout.
The two-hour training session helped the individuals in a couple of ways. First, when they worked out prior to the fatty meal, average blood-fat concentrations following the meal were about 20-30 per cent lower, compared to the no-workout situation. Second, PEAK blood-fat levels were diminished by around 23 per cent when a pre-meal workout had been carried out (i.e., there was a smaller surge in blood fat following the meal). The researchers speculated that the lengthy exertion had turned the muscles' fat-guzzling tendencies up a notch, helping to keep the bloodstream more free of fat.
The lesson? If you know you're going to be tying on the fat feedbag, a two-hour session of walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming at low intensity can prepare your body to process the fat more efficiently. Don't use this knowledge to let your food-consumption patterns go all to hell, however. You still should follow a sensible, high-carbohydrate, moderate-fat diet in order to increase your chances of athletic success and decrease your risk of cardiovascular problems.
'The Effect of Brisk Walking on Subsequent Post-Prandial Lipaemia in Recovery,' International Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 14, p. 296, 1993
periods. More specifically, the new research suggests that a lengthy exertion during the day before the consumption of a high-fat meal may increase your muscles' ability to metabolize the fat on your platter. Since your muscles are metabolizing more fat, less fat should be able to slip into your arterial walls or the fat cells lining your abdomen.
At Loughborough, six males and six females exercised at a low intensity of 31% V02max (about 50 per cent of maximal heart rate) for two hours and then - 15 hours later - consumed a high-fat meal which offered 1.2 grams of fat per kilogram of body weight. That meant that a 1 54-pound person swallowed 84 grams of fat, or a rather lofty 756 calories of blubber. On a separate occasion, the subjects again consumed the enhanced-fat meal, but without the preceding prolonged workout.
The two-hour training session helped the individuals in a couple of ways. First, when they worked out prior to the fatty meal, average blood-fat concentrations following the meal were about 20-30 per cent lower, compared to the no-workout situation. Second, PEAK blood-fat levels were diminished by around 23 per cent when a pre-meal workout had been carried out (i.e., there was a smaller surge in blood fat following the meal). The researchers speculated that the lengthy exertion had turned the muscles' fat-guzzling tendencies up a notch, helping to keep the bloodstream more free of fat.
The lesson? If you know you're going to be tying on the fat feedbag, a two-hour session of walking, jogging, cycling, or swimming at low intensity can prepare your body to process the fat more efficiently. Don't use this knowledge to let your food-consumption patterns go all to hell, however. You still should follow a sensible, high-carbohydrate, moderate-fat diet in order to increase your chances of athletic success and decrease your risk of cardiovascular problems.
'The Effect of Brisk Walking on Subsequent Post-Prandial Lipaemia in Recovery,' International Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 14, p. 296, 1993
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