Have you been so desirous of exercising but just couldn’t find the motivation to hit the gym?
Well, there is good news for you!
According to a study published by the Journal of Endocrinology, the motivation you need is right on your palms. Yes, open your palms and take a good look at it. Seen it?
Okay, if you haven’t seen it yet then keep reading.
Certain experiments were carried out on some mice, during which they (the mice) were made to fast or in better terms, stay away from food and the mice started carrying out voluntary exercises.
The study proposes that an increase in the levels of ghrelin, which is the appetite promoting hormone after a period of staying away from food will initiate the desire to perform exercise.
With this discovery, one can boldly say that reducing the amount of meal times can help overweight persons who want to work out and reduce weight but just can’t find the motivation to do so.
Even before now, several studies have proposed a relationship between ghrelin and exercise, but it has never been stated if ghrelin has a direct effect on the desire to exercise.
In this study, Dr Yuji Tajiri and colleagues from Kurume University School of Medicine in Japan, investigated the relationship between exercise and ghrelin levels in mice. Food intake and wheel-running activity were compared in mice given free access to food and those fed only twice a day for a limited time. Although both groups ate a similar amount of food, the restricted mice ran significantly more. Mice genetically altered to have no ghrelin and on the restricted feeding diet ran less than the mice given free access, however, this could be reversed by administering ghrelin. Furthermore, mice given free access to food and given ghrelin also ran significantly more. These findings suggest that ghrelin may play an important role in the motivation for both feeding and exercise, in response to restricted eating plans.
In his comments, Dr Tajiri states, “Our findings suggest that hunger, which promotes ghrelin production, may also be involved in increasing motivation for voluntary exercise, when feeding is limited. Therefore, maintaining a healthy eating routine, with regular mealtimes or fasting, could also encourage motivation for exercise in overweight people.” However he warned that the research was based on animals but further work needs to be done to see if the ghrelin response is also present in people. He also stated that this discovery if applicable to humans will open more avenue for cost effective diet and exercise strategies and may also indicate a new therapeutic application for ghrelin mimicking drugs.
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