Research shows that physical activity right after a meal, starting at a mere two to five minutes of walking, has a beneficial impact on post-meal hyperglycemia (elevated blood glucose).
People are taught to rest just after meals, and begin walking after 30–60 minutes have elapsed. This may be good advice for people who do not feel well when they start walking just after a meal, but for some people there is no need to rest after a meal because no such adverse reactions are felt.
Walking after eating promotes multiple potential health benefits, including better sleep quality, more heart health protection, regulated blood pressure, stabilized blood sugar levels, improved digestion, and more. Research suggests that even a 10- or 15-minute walk after meals can be enough to get positive results.
The general advice for most people is that you should eat before going on a morning walk. People shouldn't work out on either an empty stomach nor a full stomach. Instead, a light meal or a small snack can provide essential energy for your body as you walk.
The best thing to do after eating is to give your body a bit of time to digest the food. Going for a gentle walk for 10-15 minutes can aid digestion. Try not to lie down immediately after a meal, as this can slow down digestion and possibly lead to acid reflux or heartburn.
You are advised to wait at least 3 hours after eating to sleep or lie down. During this duration, food has gone through the digestive process in the stomach organs and leads to the small intestine. Apart from paying attention to the time lag, you are also advised to pay attention to the portion of food consumed.
However, this formula is more of a guideline than a hard-and-fast rule. But if you want to use it as the basis for weight loss, one way to help create that deficit is by taking a walk immediately after mealtimes. Walking can boost your metabolism, helping you burn more calories from fat.
You don't have to do this all at once—breaking it down into 10- or 15-minute chunks is fine, but the first one should be done shortly after you wake up. Several studies found that walks clear your head and allow you to think better throughout the day.
Walking on an empty stomach in the morning offers numerous health benefits, from boosting fat loss and improving insulin sensitivity to enhancing mental clarity and digestion, making it a powerful daily habit.
Getting up and moving after you eat -- even if it's only for two minutes -- can help control blood sugar levels, a new study says. If you can't do that, try standing. It helps, too.
Based on an average step length of 2 1/2 feet, 10,000 steps is roughly equal to 5 miles. However, due to factors such as your height and walking speed, this number can vary. Online calculators can help determine how many miles you'll cover in 10,000 steps.
Each time we have a small meal or a big meal, the digestive process begins and needs blood flow to the stomach. So if there is any activity after a meal or snack, there could be disruptions to the blood flow in the stomach and it could go to the extremities.
Lunch. Lunch should be about four to five hours after breakfast. For example, if you ate breakfast at 7 am, eat lunch between 11 am and noon. If it is not possible for you to eat lunch until 2 pm on a particular day, then plan a snack in between those two meals.
Fat burning
Early morning walks are effective for all kinds of fat loss including belly fat loss. According to a study by Nottingham Trent University, exercising on an empty stomach helps people burn around 70% more fat than those who worked out for two hours after eating.
Some research suggests that a 30-minute brisk walk that starts 15 minutes after a meal can improve the glycemic response in young, healthy adults. “If you're just going for a walk at a normal level, meaning not too vigorous of a pace, you can hop up right after you are finished eating if you'd like,” Ehsani says.
Drawbacks of a morning walk
A morning walk may be hard to do if you are not a morning person or if you have a busy schedule. You may need to wake up earlier and sacrifice some sleep time. More warming up and stretching may be required as your muscles are usually colder and stiffer after a night's rest.
Morning walk between 6.30 am to 8 am, strikes a balance between tranquility and practicality. The sun has risen, offering ample light without the intensity of midday heat.
There are many benefits of walking after eating, such as improving digestion, aiding weight loss and regulating blood sugar. By walking for as little as two minutes after eating, you can experience health benefits like more regulated blood sugar.
An evening stroll is almost always a good idea, whether you're taking your dog for a lap around the block or knocking out a 15-minute walk on your Peloton Tread after dinner. In particular, experts say walking in the evening can help your body unwind before it's time to hit the hay.
Can a person lose belly fat by walking? Regular aerobic exercise such as walking may be an effective way to lose belly fat. A 2014 study supports this and concluded that walking could help to burn body fat, including fat around the waist and within the abdominal cavity.
When you walk half an hour or so after eating, she says, it can decrease the amount of sugar and fats that accumulate in your bloodstream. It can also give your body more energy to exercise, digest, and regulate blood sugar levels more effectively.
Physical activity, such as walking, is important for weight control because it helps you burn calories. If you add 30 minutes of brisk walking to your daily habits, you could burn about 150 more calories a day. Of course, the more you walk and the quicker your pace, the more calories you'll burn.