Hunger After Exercise; What's Really Going On?
Have you ever crushed a workout and then your stomach starts rumbling like a bear waking up from hibernation? It turns out this a common occurrence and there's actual science behind this post-exercise phenomenon.
For some, exercise does little to stimulate extra hunger, while others consume significantly more calories post-workout than they expended. This discrepancy is likely the reason why many people don't achieve satisfactory results in terms of weight loss - they struggle to align exercise and nutrition effectively.
The Science + The Solution
Strength training damages muscle fibers and as the body repairs the tissues, this builds larger, stronger muscles. Not only does this process of muscular hypertrophy require fuel, it increases your metabolism up to 36 hours after exercise. That means you’re burning more fuel at rest which, in turn, signals the body to increase hunger.
Exercise also burns through stored energy in the form of glycogen and fat. This can deplete energy stores and bring on the growlies. But just to make sure, our body also has a post-workout surge of hunger hormones that act as a signal to our brain that we need to refuel.
With so much in the body acting to align hunger with exercise, it should be less a surprise than a wakeup call for our healthy lifestyle. Remember, you got into fitness because you wanted to feel better, so now you have to fuel your body properly before and after your workout. The trick is to satisfy your appetite not only without eating more calories than you just burned, but also making sure your food is of good quality and nutritious to help your body run more effectively and efficiently.
That’s the whole point! There should be no confusion on the matter. Let me restate it like this:
Exercise
Get hungry
Fuel up with healthy, nutritious food to effectively get to point # 4….
Build lean muscle, lose body fat, gain improved health status
Repeat
I feel that a lot of people simply don’t understand the concept and get hung up on why they have so much post-exercise hunger. It serves a purpose, so don’t worry so much about why it happens; just feed your body intelligently so that it can use the fuel productively, instead of putting on extra weight by eating junk.
If you exercise before a main meal, it allows you to refuel without guilt. But again, stay on track with healthy eating rather than letting your hunger nag you into unhealthy food choices. Eat some extra protein - a slice of turkey or steak, some salmon, or Greek yogurt - to keep your appetite in check.
Immediately post-workout is also the best time to eat carbs because your cells are then more sensitive to insulin, so you’ll store calories as an energy source in muscle instead of as fat. Healthy carbs include foods in whole, unprocessed form such as starch (boiled grains, sweet potatoes), all vegetables, and fruit.
So next time you find yourself reaching for a post-workout snack without thinking, remember that your body is simply responding to the demands you placed on it during exercise. The gym is only half the equation. Choose your fuel wisely to support your fitness goals and fulfill the second half of the equation.
Thanks for being a loyal reader. I truly enjoy educating people on the subject of exercise and nutrition. With so much shallow and biased information today, it’s important to receive intelligent and knowledgeable advice through an unbiased filter. Our articles will always remain free, but if you desire to help our cause, please feel free to provide a small donation.