2024-07-18 18:05:01
Is it better to exercise in the morning or in the evening? A recent study provides an answer to this question. Overweight people in particular can benefit from this.
Regular exercise is important for health, especially for people who are overweight. This is because exercise can lower blood sugar levels and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes in the long term.
A new study from the University of Granada (Spain) has now found that exercising in the evening is particularly good for your blood sugar. The study was published in the journal “Obesity”.
The researchers from Spain investigated how moderate to vigorous physical activity at different times of the day affects the blood sugar of overweight people. To do this, they compared exercise in the morning (6 a.m. to 12 p.m.), in the afternoon (12 p.m. to 6 p.m.) and in the evening (6 p.m. to midnight).
The result: evening exercise lowers blood sugar levels more than exercise in the morning or afternoon. The effect was particularly strong in people with chronically elevated blood sugar levels.
It is not yet clear why exercise in the evening has a positive effect on blood sugar levels in overweight people. One theory is that our bodies process sugar differently in the evening than in the morning. It is assumed that the muscles are less able to absorb sugar in the afternoon and evening.
For this reason, exercise in the evening may stimulate the muscles to absorb more sugar. At the same time, it has previously been shown that exercise can improve metabolism and insulin sensitivity in muscle cells, allowing them to absorb blood sugar better.
By the way: If the muscle cells absorb the sugar and use it up, it cannot be stored in the fat deposits. Exercising in the evening could therefore also lead to you putting on less body fat.
Anyone who is overweight or has problems with blood sugar could therefore benefit in several ways from exercise in the evening. But the study also shows that exercise is always better for blood sugar levels than no exercise – whether in the morning, at lunchtime or in the evening.