Question:
Can xercise increase appetite?

Well me and Jen have started exercising.BTW she is doing great, but morns the loss of her buddy food. Down 31 pounds in 31 days. Anyhow Two nights so far in the high school pool. Its less expensive than a health club. But we both notice were hungry ALL the time! Havent been like this since pre op. Ate lots of protein yesterday and was still hungry from morning to nite. I am exercising hard, must of swum 30 or more laps in a competive sized pool. Anyone experience this? Or and please pass the chesse, I am hungry :(    — bob-haller (posted on January 15, 2002)

January 14, 2002
I have experienced this a lot! I experienced it pre-op more though. But I am about 8 weeks post op and was never hungry until I started back at the gym, and now I can feel hunger again! It's weird, and on the days I don't excercise I could go all day without eating and not notice, but when I excercise I get hungry and even seem to be able to get a little more down!
   — Deborah W.

January 14, 2002
Hi Bob. Nice to hear your wife is getting with the program. Yes exercising increases your metabolism (the rate at which you burn food). You're burning food much faster and thereby experiencing hunger a lot quicker. You'll notice that it is a lot easier to eat several small meals a day when you're exercising. Try a protein drink after exercising. Post exercise is the best absorption time for protein (in pre-digested drink form). Good luck and God Bless!
   — Kimberly L.

January 15, 2002
Hi Bob, good to hear that Jen is doing so good. I guess all of us are so different in how our bodies respond. At about 7 wks. post-op my hunger came back with a vengeance, and hasn't stopped since. I just started exercising vigorously a week ago and haven't noticed a change in hunger, but it is there most of the time anyway. I do know that when my husband started working out his caloric need drastically increased and he now consumes mega food and I don't know where he puts it. (non WLS and fit) So I believe that it is probably really common. And individual.
   — Cheri M.

January 15, 2002
I am currently 8 months post op, and have lost 136 lbs with only 25 more to go. I've been going to the gym for 3 months. After I'm done working out, I am always hungry regardless when I ate lunch. So I drink tons of water during my workout, which for me represses the growling tummy, and when I get home I have a peice of fruit or vegtable. I just try to make my snacks healthy since snacking is what got me in trouble in the first place.
   — Michelle K.

January 15, 2002
Bob... glad to hear Jen is doing well.. I haven't been swimming post-op yet (it IS WINTER here in NE Ohio - and directions to my house include "... turn off the PAVED road.." LOL) but I can tell you about my swimming experience PRE-op. A friend and I signed up for European Health Spa several years ago, to get swimming exercise. We'd swim HARD for at least an hour. Burned LOTS of calories. Toned LOTS of muscles. Then, after our swim... we'd go next door to A&W Root Beer and eat 1/2 DOZEN HOT DOGS and a big mug of root beer.. EACH!!!! LOL So much for all the calorie burning! :-) So, in answer to your question, YES - swimming created a HUGE appetite for me...more than ANY other type of work-out..
   — Diane E.

August 6, 2003
I realize that this is about a year and a half late ... I have had many successful periods of weight loss that involved swimming. Naturally, I've always gained it all back. That's why I'm having surgery! Anyway, I also noticed an increased appetite each time I began my swimming routine. But I kept upping my swim, eventually getting to 3 miles 5x/week. You know those people who talk about "endorphin rush?" Well, I think that's what happened to me. At about 1.5 miles, I'd be exhausted, but not so much that I'd be afraid of drowning. At about 2 miles, I started to feel pretty good. Just after that, I'd feel soooo good. If not for the fact that I'm such a slow swimmer (about 1.25 mph), I would have kept going. It just takes up so much time. But when I was finished, I didn't have any hunger at all, really. Very thirsty, though.
   — Annie H.