Is morning really best? Let your biorhythms determine when you should work out. All things considered, it really won't make much of a difference in your results. By: Brad Schoenfeld

A popular fitness tenet is that cardio should be performed first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. The theory behind this belief is as follows: A prolonged absence of food brings about a reduction in circulating blood sugar, causing glycogen (stored carbohydrate) levels to fall. With a diminished availability of glycogen, your body tends to rely more on fat - rather than glucose - to fuel your workout. Under ideal conditions, there is an increased oxidation of fat during exercise - a fact that is supported by research.

Just Looking At The Amount Of Fat Burned During Exercise Is Shortsighted
The truth is, however, it's not always best to perform cardio as soon as you roll out of bed. Although the prospect of increasing fat oxidation sounds good on the surface, there are several misconceptions that need to be taken into account. For one, the human body is a very dynamic organism and continually adjusts its use of fat for fuel. Substrate utilization is governed by a host of factors (including enzyme levels, substrate availability, internal feedback loops, etc.) and these factors can literally change by the moment. Thus, simply looking at the amount of fat burned during exercise is shortsighted. Fat burning must be considered over the course of an entire day - not on an hour to hour basis - to get a meaningful perspective on its impact on body composition.

What's more, only about half of the fat utilized during aerobic exercise is mobilized from adipose tissue; the balance comes from fat stored intramuscularly (within muscle) . The important point here is that intramuscular fat has no bearing on aesthetic appearance; it's the subcutaneous fat stored in adipose tissue that influences body composition. Consequently, the actual fat-burning effects of the strategy are far less than otherwise thought.

Eating before exercise actually increases caloric expenditure
In addition, studies have shown that eating before exercise actually increases caloric expenditure. This apparently is related to the thermic effect of food (TEF). You see, every time you eat a mixed meal there is a corresponding increase in metabolic rate.

A Pre-Exercise Meal Allows You To Exercise More Intensely
When exercise is performed after the consumption of food, metabolism is heightened by about 20% over fasting levels. Better yet, these effects are maintained for up to three hours post-workout. And since burning more calories means burning more fat, eating before cardio can have thermogenic effects on exercise activity. Perhaps more significantly, a pre-exercise meal allows you to exercise more intensely. In order to perform at a high level, your body needs a ready source of glycogen; deplete glycogen stores and your performance is bound to suffer. A popular fitness tenet is that cardio Compounding matters, not everyone functions well first thing in the morning. If you're more of a night bird, chances are that you'll sleepwalk through a morning workout. The net result is that fewer calories are burned during activity. Again, total caloric expenditure has a direct effect on fat oxidation, so these factors ultimately lead to a lower-quality, less-efficient exercise session.

Exercise When You Are At Your Best
In final analysis, simply increasing the percentage of calories burned from fat doesn't necessarily translate into an improved body composition. There isn't necessarily anything wrong with performing exercise after an overnight fast, but it isn't going to make a significant difference on your body's appearance, either.
The best advice is to exercise when you are at your best; let your biorhythms determine when you should work out. If you are a morning person, go ahead and train early. But if you don't really get going until you've been awake for several hours, by all means train later in the day. All things considered, it really won't make much of a difference in your results.

About Brad Schoenfeld
Brad Schoenfeld, CSCS, is a nationally renowned fitness expert and the author of six fitness books. His most recent book, 28-DAY BODY SHAPEOVER, details the most effective program for transforming your physique in just one month's time.

Visit the Author's website at: www.lookgreatnaked.com

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I think the secret behind a very successful diet is to have a strict schedule. Workout. Eating times. Sleeping Time.

I am still in the middle of a move. To Lem's place. It's in the boonies. Surrey to be exact. So now Just Ladies Fitness is no longer just a step out of my apartment doors. I am not much of a morning person, and it's so hard to get up 2 hours earlier to go workout and make it to work on time. I cant exercise after work because by the time I am done, the gym is closed. So you can see what kind of a challenge this is.

Lem is still packing his Ebay stuff and it's now 7:00PM. He's dropping me off at the gym so that I can sweat all the junk off and weigh myself. It doesnt look like this is going to happen before my gym closes at 9PM.

Restructure. Restructure. Restructure the workout plan. At least, my eating is still constant to the plan and to the rules. I am hoping that everything will fall into place like it usually does. In time. Sometime soon.

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I am still in the process of moving in with my boyfriend Lem. We are saving for this house in the burbs that we are planning to buy at the end of the year. Cutting down on all expenses.

And it's not too shabby that we get to live with his parents. His mom is the best cook there is out there. Not only for meals, but for all my forbidden sweets. And I vow to learn how to cook Filipino food decently before we move out to our place.

So, today, broke the no carb rule after 12 noon. Of course. Who can say no to a home cooked meal? I didnt eat much, but I feel guilty about eating a whole bucket of rice :) I need to get a good dose of motivation and support for this diet.

I still feel great that I have not broken all 5 of them all in one day.

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So, today I broke one of the rules of my diet. I ate after 7:30 PM. Long day at work. Stressed. Didnt even notice it.

I picked up one of my breakfast bars (you know, the type with lotsa marshmallows in it) and before you know it. I was chomping it down. And if that wasnt bad enough. I ate a second one.

Well, tomorrow is another day. And I'll make it up then.

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I am walking on sunshine baby!!!! I almost hugged the first person I saw after I weighed myself this morning at Just Ladies Fitness. But then, that wouldnt be right..... :)

So, now back to reality. It's only just been 3 days. And I can factor out why I lost this much. It's probably temporary while my body is adjusting. I'll probably see some fluctation in the next 2 weeks. What's made the difference this time around is that I have really restructed my eating habits around my RULES. I just have 5 simple rules. I eat a bigger breakfast now because that is really just when I can eat my carbs (before noon). And no eating after 7:30PM.

I feel great. More energized in the morning. For the first time in months, I've slept right through the night. Which is so fantastic.

Oh, the potential.....

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I hope Santa is already taking notes.

So, my first day has been a challenge. But I managed to slide right through the day okay. I stayed with all my diet rules. The first day is alway hard anyways. My resolution will just get stronger day by day. What do they say again? It takes 24 days to break a habit.

The habit I am planning on breaking is gaining more weight. It is very health conscious. I am planning to live on forever. ...... .. If I can anway.

Since I am in the middle of my move, it's hard to maintain a regular eating habit. My daily schedule for the last month was work, home to pack and move. It will even be a bigger challenge after I move to maintain my work out habits. I will figure it out. I will survive. I want to do this.

It's going to be a great summer.

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For lack of better terms to use, this is my brand new diet.

The other day, when I went to Just Ladies Fitness, I realized that I have gained 10 lbs. This is not very good. It is from the chips, Pop and McDonald's diet that Lem and I have been stuck to lately because we are moving. Plus, I stopped taking my Slim Quick pills. Well, these are just mistakes that need to be corrected. With summer and all around the corner. Can't you hear the beach calling?

Jogging on the treadmill, Oprah was on. It's like as if she knew I needed some motivation to start this process again. This was the long awaited show with Bob Greene and 12 Weeks to a Total Body MakeOver. Well, I think I can do that. Just as long as I act within the rules.
On my way to work, I have started to work on my rules and here they are:

Eat a proper breakfast
No carbohydrates after noon
No food after 7:30 at night
20 minute cardio 5 times a week
No pop

Today is my first day. I worked out this morning and now have made plans with Carrie to go to a place where I can have my no carbs lunch.

I will most likely put a running counter of how much weight has been lost, to keep all my loyal fans posted. If you would like to join me, let me know, and I will put your weight loss on my counter also.

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