How Should Body Fat Burning Be Timed?

Timing of Body Fat Burning: Which Times Are Most Effective?

If you aim to reduce fat stores in your body, it is useful to first learn how your body uses calories as fuel so that you can manage your weight. Your body gets the energy it needs from fat, carbohydrates and proteins. (1) Which of the energy sources we mentioned will be used more is closely related to the type and timing of exercise you will do ^[1] .

The body primarily uses carbohydrates and fats for energy use ^[1] . Although the amount of protein used varies depending on your activity, protein consumption is generally less than these two. Protein utilization occurs mainly during the post-workout muscle repair process ^[1] .

Most people aim to burn fat, but losing weight doesn’t always mean you’re burning fat. In weight loss, the balance of calories lost in fat, muscle and water is not important. For example, in most diets that help you lose weight in a short time, the loss is mainly due to water.

The long-term and permanent effect in weight loss is mainly due to fat burning. However, carbohydrates are often needed, especially during intense training. Loss of muscle mass is not a desired situation in exercise planning and weight loss goals.

So, what is the effect of exercise hours on fat burning? First of all, let us point out that since everyone’s circadian rhythm, personal preferences and lifestyle are different, there is no definitive rule that fits everyone. However, many studies show that exercises performed early in the morning make a slight difference in fat burning ^[2] . After fasting overnight, the carbohydrate content in your body is lower and it turns to fat stores for energy use ^[2] .

Morning Exercises and Fat Burning: The Importance of Early Hours

Exercise timing, as well as other factors such as age, gender, lifestyle, healthy diet program, personal preferences, exercise intensity/type, are often important in fat loss ^[2] . Exercising while fasting, especially before a meal, helps you burn fat ^[2] . Most research on the subject reveals that people who exercise especially between 07.00 and 09.00 generally have a lower body mass index (BMI) than those who exercise at other hours of the day ^[2] .

One of the factors that can help you burn more fat when you exercise early in the morning is the acceleration of your metabolism ^[3] . Morning exercises can cause your metabolism to work faster compared to exercises performed at other times of the day, which results in more fat loss. Additionally, carbohydrate reserves are less in the morning before breakfast, and the rate of fat burning can increase by up to 20% on average compared to training at other times of the day ^[4] .

The fact that morning workouts generally seem advantageous is also due to the high levels of cortisol and growth hormone, which are associated with metabolism ^[5] . So your body’s hormonal system usually encourages you to burn more fat early in the morning ^[5] . Choosing early hours often gives good results in terms of providing better appetite control throughout the day and making it easier to stick to healthy habits ^[5] .

Advantages and Disadvantages of Exercising in the Morning

Although exercising in the morning generally seems to be more advantageous in burning fat quickly, you do not need to worry if you are not a morning person or cannot find time to exercise in the morning. When you force yourself to wake up at 5 in the morning and exercise, you may encounter the situation of frequently missing your workouts. However, it is better to work consistently, even if it is late, rather than experiencing such a situation ^[6] . As we have already stated, there is no single good timing for burning fat.

When deciding at what time you can exercise, it is useful to consider that morning and evening hours both have their own advantages and disadvantages. Below you can examine the advantages and disadvantages you may encounter when exercising early in the morning:

Advantages

• It accelerates metabolism ^[6] .
• It increases your energy level and helps you feel more energetic throughout the day ^[6] .
• It supports the healing and regulation of your sleep cycle ^[6] .
• It makes it easier for you to create a routine ^[6] .
• It helps you feel better throughout the day ^[6] .
• It supports fat burning to continue for a longer time ^[4] .

Disadvantages

• You may have difficulty waking up ^[6] .
• Your warm-up time may take longer ^[6]
• You can start exercising with low energy ^[6] .
• Your physical performance may be lower than at other times of the day ^[6] .

If you experience more potential disadvantages when exercising in the morning, perhaps other times of the day may be more ideal for you. For example, if you feel less energetic, unable to wake up and tired in the morning, your workouts may not be intense enough to burn fat. It would be useful for you to take this into consideration as well.

Tips for Creating a Morning Exercise Habit

You can facilitate your fat burning and weight loss process with moderate to intense exercise in the early morning hours ^[2] . If you do not have such a habit but want to do morning exercises, you can take a look at some of our suggestions below ^[6] :

• Get up at least 15-30 minutes earlier in the morning.
• Plan the workout you will do in the morning and what clothes you will wear the night before.
• Start with small goals like 20 minutes a day, 3 days a week.
• If possible, find a friend who you can work with and who can motivate you.
• Practice healthy sleep habits, like avoiding screen light or caffeine late at night. Also make sure you get enough sleep.
• When you finish the week, reward yourself for what you accomplished.

Exercising regularly in the early morning hours requires patience, planning and consistency. It is possible that you may have to make changes in your lifestyle (going to bed earlier, reducing alcohol and caffeine intake at night, etc.). However, over time, you may start to find morning workouts more fun and easier.

Fat Burning During the Day: The Role of the Afternoon and Evening Hours

The effect of the activity you do at different times of the day may also be different. If you like to exercise more in the evening and evening hours, you will definitely see the benefits of this. As a result, you can burn fat with regular exercise and a good nutrition program, no matter what time you do it.

Many people also exercise in the evening or after work. Especially between 16.00 and 19.00 are among the most intense exercise hours. Although the morning hours seem to be more advantageous when it comes to burning fat, according to many studies, you can also gain different benefits from the afternoon and evening hours.

For example, since you will have eaten one or two meals before your afternoon workouts, your performance is likely to increase ^[5] . The increase in your blood sugar can give you extra strength, especially for high-intensity workouts. Higher performance can also bring better results ^[5] . In addition, afternoon/evening workouts are often an effective choice to relieve the tiredness of the day and revitalize.

The number of people training between 19.00-22.00 is not small. Exercises during these hours are considered evening/night exercises. However, although it may vary from person to person, the revitalizing effect of particularly intense training during these hours may be greater and may push sleep time to later hours ^[5] .

Advantages and Disadvantages of Evening Exercises

If you do not have a flexible schedule to exercise in the morning or you are not a morning person, doing exercises in the evening/evening can also be very effective in burning fat. So, what are the advantages and disadvantages of exercising in the evening or in the evening?

Advantages

• It provides stronger and better physical performance ^[6] .
• It is more effective in relieving stress ^[6] .
• Warm-up periods before exercise are shorter ^[6] .
• Body flexibility is greater in the afternoon and evening ^[6] .

Disadvantages

• Exercise done close to bedtime can make it difficult to sleep ^[6] .
• It can make you feel tired after a long day ^[6] .
• Exercises performed late at night may be more difficult to sustain than in the morning ^[6] .

Suggestions for Burning Fat

If you want to lose weight, mainly from fat, achieve the look you want and have a healthy body, remember that this requires a general lifestyle change. Exercise hours alone are not the only factor in burning more fat. Additionally, if you pay attention to some points, your body can continue to burn fat even after exercise and you can speed up the process. Here are some useful suggestions for burning fat:

• Do high-intensity workouts. Make sure that your heart rate accelerates sufficiently during interval training (HIIT / Training that requires increasing the intensity for a certain period of time, then decreasing the tempo for a short time and then increasing it again) ^[4] .
• Do not extend the rest period too much during training. It is often ideal to rest for 30-60 seconds before getting your heart rate up again ^[4] .
• Combine exercises. Doing combination exercises is also beneficial in burning fat ^[4] .
• Keep challenging yourself. In exercise types that burn more fat (HIIT exercises, cardiovascular exercises, strength-weight exercises, etc.), it is necessary to make program changes from time to time ^[4] .
• Get your sleep, eat healthy and create sustainable exercise routines.

Remember that to burn fat, you usually have to do high-intensity workouts that can challenge you. It is of great importance for both your health and your desired results to consult your doctor and a sports trainer before starting high-intensity training.

Although the results of past and recent studies indicate that the most effective time for fat burning is the morning hours, more research is needed. In addition, the majority of studies were conducted independently of other factors such as nutrition style, age, and gender. Exercise hours alone cannot be an effective factor in fat burning. Many factors such as a person’s biological structure, circadian rhythm, and personal preferences are among the factors that affect fat burning.

We recommend that you fully evaluate all factors when setting your fat burning and weight loss goals. However, it is a fact that the time of day you exercise can affect the speed and amount of fat burning. After fasting overnight, training while carbohydrate levels are still low helps your body turn to more fat reserves to provide energy.

In fact, there is no one-size-fits-all “right time” for exercise. When you like and can exercise, it’s the right time for you. While some people get more efficiency from exercising in the morning, you can perform much more effectively in the afternoon or evening. The key is consistency, type and frequency of exercise. Of course, a balanced nutrition program and healthy lifestyle habits make it easier for you to burn more fat and achieve a fit appearance.