The Science-Backed Way to Keep Your Junk-Food Cravings in Check
Exercise has been getting some great press lately: First, there was the news that exercise is basically a fountain of youth (yes, please!). And now, new research out of the University of Leeds finds that a hefty dose of exercise could be the key to willingly — nay happily! — choosing a matcha smoothie bowl over a matcha-glazed donut.
As the New York Post reports, the study, presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Porto, looked at the exercise and eating habits of 180 adults and found that those who exercised the most — at an impressive three hours of movement per day — were significantly less tempted by unhealthy foods, and actually craved healthier choices instead, than the exercise-averse folks in the group.
As lead researcher Graham Finlayson explained, “The take-home message is that engaging in lots of physical activity may act as a ‘buffer’ against a preference for high-fat foods … There’s a public perception that if you do lots of exercises then you’re more likely to want to compensate and reward yourself with high-energy foods. So what we’re showing here is counterintuitive — actually that’s not the case.”
Now, who else will be lunging while taking work calls to try to get to that three-hour mark?
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