What Is EPOC

Happy Wednesday everyone and I hope you are having a fantastic week. I apologize that a weekly newletter hasn't been sent in a few weeks but my hardrive crashed and I finally got my computer back up and running!!!

So last time we chatted we went over the difference between Aerobic and Anaerboic exercise and the effect it has on our metabolisms. Continuing with that theme today we are going to look at what is EPOC and the effect it has on our metabolisms.

For some of you, you may already know what this is but for those that don't EPOC stands for (Excessive Post Excerise Oxygen Consupmtion). EPOC (informally called afterburn) is a measurably increased rate of oxygen intake following strenuous activity intended to erase the body's "oxygen deficit."

To make this a little easier to understand I am going to use a car as our example. What happens to your engine at the end of a long car trip? We should all know that once you’ve reached your destination, your car’s engine stays warm as it gradually cools to it's original resting temperature before you left on your trip. Well as it turns out or bodies respond to exercise in the same fashion. Similar to how a car’s engine remains warm after being turned off, once a workout is over and you’re back in your daily routine, your body’s metabolism can continue to burn more calories then when at complete rest. This physiological effect is called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC. As I stated earlier this is an oxygen debt, EPOC is the amount of oxygen required to restore your body to its normal, resting level of metabolic function (called homeostasis). It also explains how your body can continue to burn calories long after you’ve finished your workout.

Your metabolism is how your body converts the nutrients you consume in your diet to adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the fuel your body uses for muscular activity. ATP is produced either with oxygen using the aerobic pathways or without oxygen relying on the anaerobic pathways. When you first start to exercise, your body uses the anaerobic energy pathways and stored ATP to fuel that activity. A proper warm-up is important because it can take about five to eight minutes to be able to efficiently use aerobic metabolism to produce the ATP necessary to sustain physical activity. Once a steady-state of oxygen consumption is achieved, the aerobic energy pathways are able to provide most of the ATP needed for the workout. Exercise that places a greater demand on the anaerobic energy pathways during the workout can increase the need for oxygen after the workout, thereby enhancing the EPOC effect.

Here are several importand things you should know about EPOC and how it can help you achieve optimal levels of calorie burning from your workouts as well as maximal fat burn.

1. Exercise that consumes more oxygen burns more calories.

The body expends approximately 5 calories of energy (a calorie is the amount of energy required to heat 1 liter of water 1 degree centigrade) to consume 1 liter of oxygen. Therefore, increasing the amount of oxygen consumed both during and after a workout, can increase the amount of net calories burned.

2. Circuit training and heavy resistance training with short rest intervals require ATP from the anaerobic pathways, leading to a significant EPOC effect.

Strength training with compound, multijoint weightlifting exercises or doing a weightlifting circuit that alternates between upper- and lower-body movements places a greater demand on the involved muscles for ATP from the anaerobic pathways. Increased need for anaerobic ATP also creates a greater demand on the aerobic system to replenish that ATP during the rest intervals and the post-exercise recovery process. Heavy training loads or shorter recovery intervals increase the demand on the anaerobic energy pathways during exercise, which yields a greater EPOC effect during the post-exercise recovery period.

3. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is the most effective way to stimulate the EPOC effect.

The body is most efficient at producing ATP through aerobic metabolism; however, at higher intensities when energy is needed immediately, the anaerobic pathways can provide the necessary ATP much more quickly. This is why we can only sustain high-intensity activity for a brief period of time—we simply run out of energy. HIIT works because during high-intensity exercise ATP is produced by the anaerobic pathways; once that ATP exhausted, it is necessary to allow ATP to be replenished. The rest interval or active-recovery period during an anaerobic workout allows aerobic metabolism to produce and replace ATP in the involved muscles. The oxygen deficit is the difference between the volume of O2 consumed during exercise and the amount that would be consumed if energy demands were met through only the aerobic energy pathway.

So as you can see the most efficent and effective way to improve EPOC is with HIIT Training and Heavy resistance training. Not only do we create a better EPOC effect using these methods but they are also much more benefical in burning pure body fat! The effects of EPOC can last up to 36hrs after your workout where a simple steady state cardio workout stops burning calories shortly after you stop your workout.

I am positive that if you implement these types of workouts in your weight loss journey you will start seeing the results you desire. If you haven't started your journey but are wanting to and do not know where to start, contact me and lets get started today!!

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