Research

Hormonal

Adiposity (body fat percentage) does not significantly modify the acute or chronic appetite and energy intake responses to exercise, meaning exercise is equally effective for appetite regulation in lean and overweight/obese individuals.

Your body weight does not determine how well exercise works for regulating your appetite. Whether you are lean or have overweight/obesity, exercise will similarly suppress your appetite temporarily and not trigger compensatory overeating. This makes exercise a universally applicable tool for energy balance.

GoodRefutesHIGH confidence
the balance of evidence suggests that adiposity and sex do not modify appetite or energy intake responses to acute or chronic exercise interventions
James L. Dorling et al. · Nutrients · 2018

Why this rating

The paper states 'the balance of evidence suggests' this, citing multiple studies with consistent findings on appetite/energy intake, though hormonal responses vary.

Source

Acute and Chronic Effects of Exercise on Appetite, Energy Intake, and Appetite-Related Hormones: The Modulating Effect of Adiposity, Sex, and Habitual Physical Activity

James L. Dorling et al. · Nutrients · 2018

DOI 10.3390/nu10091140

narrative_reviewCited 219×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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