High-Intensity Interval Exercise Reduces Energy Intake in Adults With Overweight or Obesity

A Danish randomized crossover trial found that a single session of high-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) significantly reduced immediate energy intake and appetite in adults with overweight or obesity, without increasing food intake over the following 24 hours, while the time of day had only modest effects that differed by type 2 diabetes (T2D) status. Fifty-eight adults with and without T2D completed four laboratory visits involving HIIE or rest in either the morning or late afternoon. Compared with rest, HIIE lowered ad libitum energy intake by an average of 361 kJ, reduced subjective appetite, decreased the hunger hormone ghrelin, and increased the metabolic hormones FGF21 and GDF15. Exercise-induced increases in FGF21 and GDF15 occurred regardless of the time of day, although participants with T2D showed higher GDF15 responses overall, and morning HIIE produced higher FGF21 levels than late afternoon exercise in those with T2D. Among participants without T2D, morning HIIE also led to lower energy intake than late afternoon HIIE, whereas other time-of-day effects were minimal. No serious adverse events were reported, indicating that acute HIIE suppresses energy intake and increases FGF21 and GDF15 in adults with overweight or obesity, with only modest time-of-day effects that vary according to T2D status. Source: https://www.thelancet.com/