Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

High-intensity intermittent exercise attenuates ad-libitum energy intake

Subjects

Abstract

Objective:

To examine the acute effects of high-intensity intermittent exercise (HIIE) on energy intake, perceptions of appetite and appetite-related hormones in sedentary, overweight men.

Design:

Seventeen overweight men (body mass index: 27.7±1.6 kg m−2; body mass: 89.8±10.1 kg; body fat: 30.0±4.3%; VO2peak: 39.2±4.8 ml kg−1 min−1) completed four 30-min experimental conditions using a randomised counterbalanced design. CON: resting control, MC: continuous moderate-intensity exercise (60% VO2peak), HI: high-intensity intermittent exercise (alternating 60 s at 100% VO2peak and 240 s at 50% VO2peak), VHI: very-high-intensity intermittent exercise (alternating 15 s at 170% VO2peak and 60 s at 32% VO2peak). Participants consumed a standard caloric meal following exercise/CON and an ad-libitum meal 70 min later. Capillary blood was sampled and perceived appetite assessed at regular time intervals throughout the session. Free-living energy intake and physical activity levels for the experimental day and the day after were also assessed.

Results:

Ad-libitum energy intake was lower after HI and VHI compared with CON (P=0.038 and P=0.004, respectively), and VHI was also lower than MC (P=0.028). Free-living energy intake in the subsequent 38 h remained less after VHI compared with CON and MC (P0.050). These observations were associated with lower active ghrelin (P0.050), higher blood lactate (P0.014) and higher blood glucose (P0.020) after VHI compared with all other trials. Despite higher heart rate and ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) during HI and VHI compared with MC (P0.004), ratings of physical activity enjoyment were similar between all the exercise trials (P=0.593). No differences were found in perceived appetite between trials.

Conclusions:

High-intensity intermittent exercise suppresses subsequent ad-libitum energy intake in overweight inactive men. This format of exercise was found to be well tolerated in an overweight population.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3

References

  1. Ross R, Freeman JA, Janssen I . Exercise alone is an effective strategy for reducing obesity and related comorbidities. Exerc Sport Sci Rev 2000; 28: 165–170.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Catenacci VA, Wyatt HR . The role of physical activity in producing and maintaining weight loss. Nat Clin Pract Endocrinol Metab 2007; 3: 518–529.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Okay D . Exercise and obesity. Prim Care 2009; 36: 379–393.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Guelfi KJ, Donges CE, Duffield R . Beneficial effects of 12 weeks of aerobic compared with resistance exercise training on perceived appetite in previously sedentary overweight and obese men. Metabolism 2013; 62: 235–243.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Balaguera-Cortes L, Wallman KE, Fairchild TJ, Guelfi KJ . Energy intake and appetite-related hormones following acute aerobic and resistance exercise. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2011; 36: 958–966.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Crisp NA, Fournier PA, Licari MK, Braham R, Guelfi KJ . Optimising sprint interval exercise to maximise energy expenditure and enjoyment in overweight boys. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2012; 37: 1222–1231.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Thivel D, Isacco L, Montaurier C, Boirie Y, Duche P, Morio B . The 24-h energy intake of obese adolescents is spontaneously reduced after intensive exercise: a randomized controlled trial in calorimetric chambers. PLoS One 2012; 7: e29840.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Erdmann J, Tahbaz R, Lippl F, Wagenpfeil S, Schusdziarra V . Plasma ghrelin levels during exercise—effects of intensity and duration. Regul Pept 2007; 143: 127–135.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Ueda S, Yoshikawa T, Katsura Y, Usui T, Nakao H, Fujimoto S . Changes in gut hormone levels and negative energy balance during aerobic exercise in obese young males. J Endocrinol 2009; 201: 151–159.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Kessler HS, Sisson SB, Short KR . The potential for high-intensity interval training to reduce cardiometabolic disease risk. Sports Med 2012; 42: 489–509.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. National Physical Activity Guidelines for Australia. Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing 2005.

  12. Van Strien T, Frijters JER, Bergers G, Defares PB . The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) for assessment of restrained, emotional, and external eating behavior. Int J Eat Disord 1986; 5: 295–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. West JS, Ayton T, Wallman KE, Guelfi KJ . The effect of 6 days of sodium phosphate supplementation on appetite, energy intake, and aerobic capacity in trained men and women. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab 2012; 22: 422–429.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Peryam DR, Pilgrim FJ . Hedonic scale method of measuring food preferences. Food Technol 1957; 11: 9–14.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Borg G . Psychophysical bases of perceived exertion. Med Sci Sports Exerc 1982; 14: 377–381.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Kendzierski D, DeCarlo KJ . Physical activity enjoyment scale: two validation studies. J Sport Exerc Psychol 1991; 13: 50–64.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Wansink B . Environmental factors that increase the food intake and consumption of unknowing consumers. Annu Rev Nutr 2004; 24: 455–479.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Hill AJ, Blundell JE . Nutrients and behaviour: research strategies for the investigation of taste characteristics, food preferences, hunger sensations and eating patterns in man. J Psychiatr Res 1982; 17: 203–212.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Deighton K, Barry R, Connon CE, Stensel DJ . Appetite, gut hormone and energy intake responses to low volume sprint interval and traditional endurance exercise. Eur J Appl Physiol 2013; 113: 1147–1156.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Mattes R . Hunger ratings are not a valid proxy measure of reported food intake in humans. Appetite 1990; 15: 103–113.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Wynne K, Stanley S, McGowan B, Bloom S . Appetite control. J Endocrinol 2005; 184: 291–318.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Broom DR, Stensel DJ, Bishop NC, Burns SF, Miyashita M . Exercise-induced suppression of acylated ghrelin in humans. J Appl Physiol 2007; 102: 2165–2171.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Clausen J . Effect of physical training on cardiovascular adjustments to exercise in man. Physiol Rev 1977; 57: 779–815.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Borghouts L, Borghouts B . Exercise and insulin sensitivity: A Review. Int J Sports Med 2000; 21: 1–12.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Dyck DJ . Leptin sensitivity in skeletal muscle is modulated by diet and exercise. Exerc Sport Sci Rev 2005; 33: 189–194.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Martins C, Morgan LM, Bloom SR, Robertson MD . Effects of exercise on gut peptides, energy intake and appetite. J Endocrinol 2007; 193: 251–258.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Broom DR, Batterham RL, King JA, Stensel DJ . Influence of resistance and aerobic exercise on hunger, circulating levels of acylated ghrelin, and peptide YY in healthy males. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2009; 296: R29–R34.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Lam CK, Chari M, Wang PY, Lam TK . Central lactate metabolism regulates food intake. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2008; 295: E491–E496.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Nagase H, Bray GA, York DA . Effects of pyruvate and lactate on food intake in rat strains sensitive and resistant to dietary obesity. Physiol Behav 1996; 59: 555–560.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Friedman MI . Control of energy intake by energy metabolism. Am J Clin Nutr 1995; 62: 1096S–1100S.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Scheurink AJ, Ammar AA, Benthem B, van Dijk G, Sodersten PA . Exercise and the regulation of energy intake. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord 1999; 23 (Suppl 3): S1–S6.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Ryan RM, Frederick CM, Lepes D, Rubio N, Sheldon KM . Intrinsic motivation and exercise adherence. Int J Sport Exerc Psychol 1997; 28: 335–354.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Hagberg L, Lindahl B, Nyberg L, Hellénius ML . Importance of enjoyment when promoting physical exercise. Scand J Med Sci Sports 2009; 19: 740–747.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Bartlett JD, Close GL, MacLaren DP, Gregson W, Drust B, Morton JP . High-intensity interval running is perceived to be more enjoyable than moderate-intensity continuous exercise: implications for exercise adherence. J Sports Sci 2011; 29: 547–553.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The hormone assays were carried out with the facilities at the Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis, The University of Western Australia that are supported by the fundings of the University, State and Federal Government. TJF is in receipt of a McCusker Charitable Foundation grant, which was used to help defray costs of the Hormone assays.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to A Y Sim.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Sim, A., Wallman, K., Fairchild, T. et al. High-intensity intermittent exercise attenuates ad-libitum energy intake. Int J Obes 38, 417–422 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2013.102

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2013.102

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links