After the Workout Is Still Workout Time: EPOC, the Afterburn Effect

The afterburn effect: What does this miracle tool really do?

Looking to lose weight and came across the much-touted afterburn effect? Is the afterburn effect after exercise just a myth, or is it real? What exactly it is and why it's worth taking a closer look is what we will clarify below.

What exactly is the afterburn effect?

In English, the afterburn effect is abbreviated as EPOC: “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption.” It essentially means “excess oxygen consumption after exercise.” Which doesn't necessarily read any smoother, which is why the term “afterburn effect” has simply become established. But what exactly is this afterburn effect? After a long or intense workout, your metabolism shifts into high gear to help your body recover. This means it continues to burn energy even after your workout. This afterburn effect can roughly last 12 to 24 hours, and in extreme cases even a bit longer. However, it depends heavily on how long and, above all, how intensely you train.
Studies have shown that EPOC only kicks in during very intense training; HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) would be one such case. As duration increases at a steady, low exercise intensity, the afterburn effect increases only linearly; thus double the time means double the EPOC. However, if you increase the intensity of your workout – which typically happens during demanding strength training and HIIT sessions – EPOC increases exponentially! So the afterburn effect is significantly better and more effective with intense workouts.

Which types of training promise the highest afterburn effect?

We just mentioned it: the more intense your workout, the higher the chances of an effective afterburn effect. For example: a consistently challenging 30-minute jog outdoors or on your treadmill at home at your "normal" running pace will likely not achieve as high an afterburn effect as an absolutely sweat-drenching 15-minute HIIT workout. During an intense and demanding (strength) workout, your body consumes significantly more oxygen than during a running session where you move steadily at a comfortable pace. Therefore, it must make up for this oxygen debt, revving up your metabolism (which stays elevated for some time) while keeping energy expenditure elevated even post-workout. Let's stick with the two contrasting examples of jogging and HIIT. Calorie burn DURING a workout of equal duration might be roughly the same; what matters is which workout produces a stronger afterburn effect. And that is the case with intense workouts, such as strenuous strength training or demanding HIIT. However, simply claiming endurance sports like jogging are less suitable than strength training is oversimplifying things. If you incorporate several sprints into your jog, for instance, but always train with weights during strength training that don't challenge you (enough), then the afterburn effect would likely be higher from your sprint-filled jog. There is an interesting article ("Discover the Afterburn") by American bodybuilder, author, and coach Scott Stevenson written for MuscleMag. In it, he points out that the EPOC effect after high-intensity weight training is many times higher than after a moderately strenuous cardio session. A demanding HIIT session also burns more calories post-workout than a cardio session, but training with heavy weights is even more effective. Now you might say: "Awesome, I want to lose weight. So I'll focus exclusively on the clearly more promising HIIT and strength training." But it's not quite that simple. Wouldn't it be great if it worked that way for everyone?

Losing weight with the afterburn effect – is it possible?

We can certainly agree that weight loss itself initially comes down to a simple calorie deficit: you consume fewer calories than your body burns. If you integrate HIIT and strength sessions into your training routine, you will burn even more calories post-workout thanks to the EPOC effect compared to simple low- or mid-level cardio. So far, so clear. However, there are a few points you should pay particular attention to:

1. Don't overestimate the impact of the afterburn effect! We tend to estimate the calories burned after a workout higher than they actually were. This thought can become even more extreme if we mentally add the afterburn effect and then indulge in a particularly opulent meal or a little food "reward". Yes, your basal metabolic rate increases over time the longer you engage in intense exercise, and with it, your body's energy requirements. But we usually overestimate the calories that the workout actually burns. You might also feel hungrier after training and treat yourself to a little extra food. Before you know it, you've offset the calories you painstakingly burned earlier. And thinking about the extra portion of EPOC calories that your body will burn afterwards might completely clear your conscience when you treat yourself to "just a small chocolate bar" after your workout. It's a psychological thing. So be a little careful and remember: at the end of the day/week/month, your calorie balance must be negative for you to lose weight successfully. So pay special attention to a healthy diet that supports weight loss.

2. The scale isn't always right! A bold statement – what exactly do I mean by that? Quite simply, you can successfully lose weight without the scale displaying significantly fewer kilograms. Especially with an intense, well-executed, and regular workout in the area of HIIT and strength training, your body reduces fat stores and builds muscle. Don't worry, you won't end up looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his bodybuilding days. But your body will slowly but steadily change its appearance. More muscle consumes more calories, raising your basal metabolic rate. Fat deposits are slowly but surely broken down. And as long as you don't make major nutrition slip-ups, your figure should become increasingly defined and appear slimmer. But since muscle mass weighs more than fat mass while taking up less space than fat, you will look slimmer to others. And in fact, you are! However, that doesn't necessarily mean you're losing a significant amount of weight. Therefore, we would all do well to pay a little less attention to the scale and instead do a happy dance when those favorite old pants suddenly fit again.

3. Every body and every metabolism is different! It is very difficult to put the afterburn effect into absolute numbers. For example: How many more EPOC calories does a forty-year-old man weighing 90 kg burn during this or that workout? You cannot put a universally valid number on it. Because every body is different, works differently, has a different metabolism, and a slightly different hormonal balance. And therefore, every body also reacts differently and may burn more or less, faster or slower than another.

So to sum it up as a conclusion: Yes, the EPOC effect, or afterburn effect, is proven to exist. If you want to get the most out of this afterburn effect—which, by the way, does the work for you and your body completely free of charge after your workout—you should rely on intense HIIT workouts or strength training with the maximum possible weights for you. Make sure you don't rationalize the afterburn effect to yourself and ruin the extra calories burned through overly careless eating. A diet rich in protein and conscious of carbohydrates will help you reach your goals faster.

If you keep these things in mind, you will get the most out of the afterburn effect after a strenuous workout!