Exercise Boost To Insulin Sensitivity Is Transient

We know that the body adapts to exercise in a myriad of ways that enhance health. We also know that none of these adaptations is permanent. If a person ceases to exercise, all of those hard-earned adapations reverse themselves. But exercise scientists are now learning that many of the body’s healthful adaptations to exercise are truly transient, lasting less than a day. A daily exercise habit merely gives the appearance of a lasting adaptation. One such adaptation, it appears, is increased insulin sensitivity. While regular exercise does yield a general increase in insulin sensitivity, it also produces a much stronger transient increases that lasts mere hours.

This was shown in a recent study by researchers at McMaster University. The study also found that the strength of the increase depended to a significant degree on what subjects ate after exercise. Low-carbohydrate post-exercise meals boosted insulin sensitivity the most. This makes sense, as increased insulin sensitivity is the body’s protective response to carbohydrate depletion. Exercise depletes carbohydrate, increasing the receptivity of tissues to any carbs taken in after exercise. If only a few carbs are eaten, the body becomes truly alarmed by the situation and insulin sensitivity increases more.