Getting fatter with more exercise? There is a way out
I recently had lunch with another entrepreneur, who was complaining how he’s again gaining weight after increasing exercise. Not all weight gain is bad; everyone knows that the same volume of muscle weighs more than fat and it’s possible to gain muscle weight with increased exercise, especially weight training. But now we are talking about fat! (I’ve yet to find a healthy person, who wants to gain fat on purpose)
I’ve now heard this same question so many times from friends, colleagues and recreational and more serious athletes. And, several times, I’ve fallen into the same trap myself, gained more fat especially after increasing exercise intensity. But I’ve found an easy way out of that cycle.
First, why is this happening? Exercise burns more energy, no matter what is the intensity of exercise. Higher intensity exercise burns more glycogen (i.e., carbs) – both in absolute energy and relatively(%) speaking - from the muscles and liver, which are the limited fuel tanks we carry. I’ve noticed anecdotally from myself (and my wife and other people around me) that when the glycogen stores get very low, our normal appetite picks up significantly. Even a short (say 45min) high intensity workout during which you can burn ~1000kcal and mostly carbs, can empty most of your glycogen stores (most people carry about 2000kcal of glycogen in muscles when fully loaded).
I don’t have scientific proof of this, but appetite (and especially carb cravings) pick up VERY significantly in the following 24hrs to “force” you to refuel that lost glycogen. 2-3hours of hiking or very easy cycling that also burns that 1000kcal (but mostly from fat, which is pretty much unlimited energy source for 99.9999% of us), doesn’t have that impact on appetite.
So the bottom line is that appetite increases and I believe it increases much more if you’ve depleted your glycogen stores during the exercise. This is obviously a good thing, but gaining fat in the refueling process is not.
Second, why are we then gaining fat? Everyone knows that you gain weight when you eat more than you burn. The more nuanced version of this is that when you eat, that energy can be stored in different parts of your “fuel stores”. Optimally, all the carbs are packed into your high-octane glycogen tanks (muscles) and NONE goes to your fat stores. Then you can hit hard in your exercise session and have the energy to work out at high intensity, while further burning your fat too.
The best way to ensure that food is not stored into fat, is to only eat moderate amounts of carbs (And food in general) at any one sitting and leave the fast carbs (sugar, enery gels, bread, drinks etc.) for just before/during/after exercise. On the other hand, the best way to GAIN fat is the sumo-wrestler diet, in which you skip breakfast and then eat massive amounts of food (mainly carbs) in a rested state, and mainly just before going to bed. Your body tries to get rid of all the sugar traveling in bloodstream and with the help of insulin, that sugar is transported to fat cells and muscles as rapidly as possible.
Most people who gain fat while exercising and/or increasing high intensity exercise, tend to skip food during or right after exercise. They may exercise in the morning and think “I just had a great workout and burned 700kcal, why would I eat it back when I can just drink a cup of coffee and go!” and have their first real meal at lunch. Then eat lightly and eventually the (carb) cravings get so bad that you gorge bread, rice, bars, candy, etc. And after eating all those carbs, great majority of them are quickly transported to your fat cells. This is the sumo wrestler’s diet here. Congratulations!
So what is the solution? You need to break two things:
1) Get rid of the hunger that follows from depleting your glycogen stores
2) Make sure the fueling carbs are transported to your muscles, not to your fat cells.
The solution is simple: Eat 300-400kcal of carbs (glass of juice and a typical 250-300kcal bagel will do it) immediately or within 20minutes of finishing your workout (do not wait for 1-2hrs). Two things will happen: you’ve curbed the carb cravings for good. Secondly, right after exercise, certain enzymes (and processes I don’t even understand) transport the carbs from your blood to your muscles, NOT to your fat cells.
I’ve tried this approach and helped others to do it as well and it works very very well.
If you’re exercising for 2+ hours (e.g., bike riding) and doing high intensity exercise, that 300-400kcal is obviously not enough. In that case, it is important to eat carbs even during the exercise and eat more during the hour(s) following the workout. I’ve witnessed (with myself and others) 48hr long massive carb cravings after big workouts that totally deplete glycogen stores if I haven’t re-fueled quickly after the exercise. The net results of eating massive carb meals 6 hours after the workout and just before bed time is very often gaining more fat.
So my simple recommendation: Never finish a workout without an immediate carb snack or meal.
