Planned morning aerobic exercise in a fasted state increases energy intake in the preceding 24 h

Abstract

Purpose We previously observed increased energy intake (EI) at the meal before planned afternoon exercise, but the proximity of the meal to exercise might have reduced the scale of the pre-exercise anticipatory eating. Therefore, this study examined EI in the 24 h before fasted morning exercise. Methods Fourteen males, experienced with gym-based aerobic exercise (age 25 ± 5 years, BMI 23.8 ± 2.5 kg/m2), completed counterbalanced exercise (EX) and resting (REST) trials. On day 1, subjects were told the following morning’s activity (EX/REST), before eating ad-libitum laboratory-based breakfast and lunch meals and a home-based afternoon/evening food pack. The following morning, subjects completed 30-min cycling and 30-min running (EX; 3274 ± 278 kJ) or 60-min supine rest (REST; 311 ± 34 kJ) fasted. Appetite was measured periodically, and EI quantified. Results Afternoon/evening EI (EX 7371 ± 2176 kJ; REST 6437 ± 2070 kJ; P = 0.017) and total 24-h EI (EX 14,055 ± 3672 kJ; REST 12,718 ± 3379 kJ; P = 0.011) were greater during EX, with no difference between trials at breakfast (P = 0.761) or lunch (P = 0.071). Relative EI (EI minus energy expended through EX/REST) was lower in EX (EX 10,781 ± 3539 kJ; REST 12,407 ± 3385 kJ; P = 0.004). Conclusion This study suggests planned fasted aerobic exercise increases EI during the preceding afternoon/evening, precipitating a ~ 10% increase in EI in the preceding 24-h. However, this increase did not fully compensate for energy expended during exercise; meaning exercise induced an acute negative energy balance.

Fasting Before Evening Exercise Reduces Net Energy Intake and Increases Fat Oxidation, but Impairs Performance in Healthy Males and Females

“…Indeed, studies tracking energy intake for up to 24 h post-exercise demonstrate that the reduction in energy intake caused by fasting (meal skipping) is not compensated for in this time period (McIver et al, 2019a;Edinburgh et al, 2019;Bachman et al, 2016). Additionally, recent work suggests energy intake increases in anticipation of energy restriction (James et al, 2020) and/or exercise (Barutcu et al, 2021), but this could not be assessed in the present study, as food intake was controlled to ensure similar metabolic conditions at the start of trials.…”