A study recently reported by the American College of Sports Medicine looked at "after burn." David Nieman and his team of investigators worked with a small group of young men and found that energy use after vigorous exercise does not go down as soon as the exercise session is finished. The subjects' energy use was measured during a day when they were mostly inactive. The next day was the same for them, except that they rode a stationary bike - hard enough to work up a sweat - for 45 minutes in the morning. Of course, they burned calories to do this. During the next 14 hours, during which time they were again mostly inactive, they burned a total of 190 calories more than the day before. This is about equal to losing 1/3 lb. per week while just sitting, if everything else you do would keep your weight steady. It's not much, but it can add up. If they biked less hard or less long, their metabolism was still revved up - just not nearly as much.
There are a lot of factors involved in weight control and we don't understand how all of them work. But, this fills in one piece of the puzzle, and it's encouraging news. An added benefit is that exercise helps your health in other ways, too. Of course, the usual precautions apply, like checking with your doctor before starting a vigorous work-out program if you have any hint of health or age issues.
So, don't wait - get out there and get active. (It is okay to finish reading this first!)
