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Obesity Epidemic: Fad Diet And Weight Loss

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As the obesity epidemic continues to increase, individuals and researchers are looking for effective dietary approaches for calorie restriction and weight loss. Has fasting before working out become the latest “fad diet” as an effective and safe approach, or is it just a dieting trend? It’s always been known that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but how important it is for those trying cut back on meals like breakfast to lose a few pounds? Losing weight and trying to keep it off is simply hard, especially since the standard method preferred is for individuals to load on carbohydrates before working out for overall health. A combination of proper nutrition and a well-rounded exercise regimen are key factors in promoting weight …show more content…

A lot of individuals struggle with weight loss because after skipping breakfast, they load up on calories and carbs during lunch and dinner due to starvation from the morning, but those who front load their calories earlier or throughout the day see success in getting their eating under control and lose weight. A sedentary lifestyle and lack of regular physical activity results in increasing cardiovascular risk factors, such as abdominal obesity, diabetes, dyslipidaemia and arterial hypertension (Sabaka et al., 2015). The first study conducted examined the effect of exercise performed before breakfast on body fat balance which required the measurement of accumulated fat oxidation over a 24-hour period. Fat oxidation is defined as a process by which the stored, large lipid molecules are broken down into smaller parts, triglycerides and fatty acids to use as energy (Iwayama et al., 2015). The study included a 24-hour indirect calorimetry measurement on four occasions with a session of 60 minutes of exercise performed before breakfast with an overnight fast, after lunch, or after dinner. The study was performed on healthy young men who were recreationally active but untrained individuals, who exercise 2-4 days per week at moderate intensity (Iwayama el al., 2015). The results of these studies would contribute to the understanding of the effect of time of day on the helpful effects of exercise on fat oxidation. Working out before breakfast resulted in an increase in fat oxidation compared to a stationary day. The experiment was focused strictly on energy balance, it didn’t include the effects of a stationary day in this study. A similar study examined if training after an overnight fast accelerates the loss of body fat. Since low glycogen and insulin levels cause the body to shift energy utilization

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