Let's face it, doing any exercise that involves anything more than lifting and raising your arm from the sofa to pick which Netflix show you're going to watch next will be beneficial for your body. But according to new scientific research published in the wonderfully nerdy-named Cell Metabolism, there's a certain time of day that can maximise the effects of this activity.
The research looked specifically at the muscle cells of mice, and scientists discovered that these cells most effectively burned fuels in sugar and fat during the first few hours of the animals' day. Mice are nocturnal, meaning their muscle cells better burned excess fats at night, but the researchers believe the discovery could be applied in reverse to humans given our body clocks work in the opposite way.
Which means, unfortunately, early mornings are going to give your work out a boost. But look at it this way - once it's done, it's done and you don't have to spend the rest of your working day dreading having to hit the treadmill when you'd much rather go to the pub.
Dr. Joseph Bass, a professor of endocrinology in the Department of Medicine at Northwestern, where the study was carried out, explained the science behind the discovery. "Oxygen and the internal clock are doing a dance together inside muscle cells to produce energy, and the time of day determines how well that dance is synchronised," he says.
So make sure you remember this when your alarm clock goes off and you're doing all you can not to hit the snooze button. It's for the greater good.
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