"Exercise early/abstain late."

From the May edition of Bicycling Magazine -- Blast off the Pounds! Top Pros tell how they lost weight, from 10-80 pounds.

The one that intrigues me is Dan Schmatz, 5'10", 160 lbs, lost 55 pounds.

"Schmatz's hard-core routine isn't for the faint of hear: He doesn't eat after 7 p.m. and he often does a 30-60 minute run, ride or hike before breakfast. Some studies show that low-intensity exercise before breakfast helps the body burn more fat than usual. Schmatz cautions that if you try this, don't cancel the benefit by pigging out: 'A lot of people don't realize that a breakfast of a gourmet coffee drink and a bagel can pack 1,000 calories,' he says."
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So this really intrigues me. The past few days I've stuck to the "nothing after 7 pm" but haven't managed to do a workout before eating. I'm not sure I could handle that, but I'm going to give it a try.

Did anybody else see this article? Did anything inspire you?

And is anybody doing the "exercise early/abstain late" plan?

I do not think it matters when you take in your calories, I think we discussed that here or elsewhere.

However, I have seen results of blood tests they did on a bunch of athletes. They sent them out on a max. 90 minutes ride before breakfast and they saw an increase in free fatty acids in the blood i.e. fat was being used. A cup of coffee (make that black, no starbucks junk in there) increased the effect.

More than 90 minutes and you run into trouble.

I have a feeling most of us hobby riders (myself included) have the tendency to overcompensate for what we burn. I have caught myself snacking probably more than necessary before exercise so I don't bonk :o .

Hi!

The fact is, the ideal time to exercise is when YOU really would like to do your exercise.

I have had clients who have attempted to not eating before working out with me thing. And i can't say that i approve. They are always light headed, they can't get through their workouts, and more often than not, we have to stop and i force food into them anyway.

Personally, not a tactic i would recommend.

Stop worrying about it!!! Just exercise and enjoy the process. I think when we get hung up on all these details, thats what makes exercising seem so impossible. The fact is for HEALTH and Weight Management benefits, that most people here are looking for, moving your body is ultimately what you need to do.

Studies show that 3 ten minute bouts of exercise is equivalent to 30 minutes of continuous. There wasn't a difference when intensity was either moderate or vigorous, the benefits were the same. so for people who can't find the time, this strategy works well!

Ok, stepping off the soap box now!

:)
Hannah

Thanks for the feedback.

As for worrying about it -- I'm not. But of all the tips I've read, for some reason that one resonated with me. I think it's clear that not eating in the evening is a good rule for weight loss, anyway.

For the past five or six days I've stopped eating after 7. Only one day did I ride before breakfast, and it wasn't a long ride. Believe me, I don't want to be lightheaded or end up with a headache from not eating!

And I've lost a couple of pounds, which is always a good thing.

Alpine... we discussed this recently in my "no carbs after five" thread... which I was unable to "scientifically" do with consitency.

As for the exercise early thing, you do need to find what works for you as Han says.

However,
- a glass of cool water (or other cold drink) first thing in the morning will lift your metabolism.
- exercising - light aerobic - for 30-40mins in the morning lifts your metabolism.
- by not eating breakfast til 20-30 mins you encourage your body to utilise stored energy
- by eating breakfast and not skipping it, you lift your meatbolism.

If you lift your metabolism first thing in the morning, you will burn more energy all day, so if this morning regimen works for you, then you will likely have quicker success with weight loss.

Pooks, congrats on the weight loss, and I suggest if you want to bike first thing before brekky, eat something light before the ride, and have a bigger morning tea...

Different strokes. I started working out when the "don't eat before working out in the morning" thing was a rule. The thought was that you train your body to use fat, rather than sugar or carbs. Obviously, this was years ago.

I prefer not eating before a short workout during the week and I do it in the morning. If I'm going to sprint or do hills, I'll take some cytomax mixed with monster (like red bull) and water. I can only do about 1/4 cup of monster to a large bottle, though. Too much caffeine.

Longer rides require fuel before starting out.

Hey Pooks, it makes considerable sense to me to not eat after 7pm. I've tried to do that for years. I read something in 'younger next year' which talked about how the calories you take in and then rest are metabolised a different way than the ones you take in and then exercise.

Further, I must tell you a story. I have a cousin by marriage who was immensely obese. He always skipped breakfast, he snacked all day and came home and had a very large dinner. that was his lifestyle. THen he was diagnosed as diabetic.


he had to take medicine 3x a day WITH MEALS so he dutifully ate a small breakfast and a small lunch every day. In 3 months he had dropped 65 pounds. When I saw him I was astounded. I asked him what he did to lose the weight.
He said nothing! he was just eating 3 meals a day. The weightloss freaked him out, he thought he was dying. The doctor assured him it was the regular diet.

I eat three meals, and often snack, too. I just eat way too much. And while I have known for a long time that eating and then sleeping is not good, for some reason reading about Schmatz really triggered something in me.

That's a wonderful story about your relative. Most people I know who switch to a diabetic diet do lose weight.

The foundation of The Zone diet is to take in food as fuel, and the best fuel has a balance between protein, fat and carbs. Dr. Sears (who developed the plan) says that you eat smaller balanced meals throughout the day to keep your insulin levels level, and that includes one small balanced snack right before you go to bed to keep your insulin level from bottoming out by morning.