Ok. I’ll admit it. After a big workout I like to stuff my face. I feel it’s my right after putting my body through boot camp or a long run – and I’ve always thought that my metabolism is on overdrive right after a workout. But a new study has halted that spoonful of extra chunky peanut butter on its way to my gaping mouth.

Apparently the post-workout afterburn is a myth. A team of researchers tracked the calories 65 people burned after a workout compared to a day they didn’t exercise. And there was no difference in the amount of fat they burned.

This study only looks at moderate exercise, so more research is needed to study higher intensity workouts and consecutive days of exercise.

But what about weight training, you ask? It doesn’t make a difference, researchers say. It is true that a pound of muscle burns 7-10 calories a day and a pound of fat only burns 2 calories. However, researchers found that the rate of calorie burn after weight training versus not weight training didn’t vary. Apparently, those 5-pound dumbbells don’t create enough muscles to make a difference. So you have to have pump Vin Diesel-style in order to enjoy that extra spoonful of extra chunky PB.

Previous Post: Pickle Power!

Labels: calorie burn, exercise, weight loss

This entry was posted by kate, on Wednesday, July 1, 2009. You can leave your response .