It's long been a source of debate amoungst gym-goers about whether there's actually an optimal time of day to work out, but research brought to light by Gretchen Reynolds in The New York Times may have answered the question once and for all.

Reynolds highlights a 2010 study that found conclusive evidence that working out in the morning before breakfast is the best way to optimise fat burn. Why? Because it kickstarts your metabolism and boosts energy levels which in turn helps you to burn calories all day long, even when you're sitting at your desk.

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Researchers in Belgium conducted the study of 28 healthy men over a period of six weeks in a quest to find what time boosted workout results. All the men ate the same diet over the period which consisted of consuming 30 per cent more calories and 50 per cent more fat than they had been eating before.

Some took no exercise over the period, others began intense mid-morning exercise routines after they had breakfast and the last group followed the same routine but did it before breakfast. The result? The group who had done no exercise gained an average of six pounds each. The group that had been to the gym but exercised after breakfast gained an average of three pounds each and the men who'd exercised before breakfast gained no extra weight despite consuming more calories than they had been previously eating.

Peter Hespel, who conducted the study, said that although the research doesn't find that people lost weight by exercising in the morning before breakfast, for those looking to burn fat in order to reach a healthy weight, it would prove to be the best time to exercise.


He concluded: "early-morning exercise in the fasted state is more potent than an identical amount of exercise in the fed state".

Want to know what the optimal workout time is? Click here.