Eating spicy before exercise, is it useful or even dangerous?

Some say eating spicy before exercise can help burn more fat and also build muscle faster. The reason is, spicy food is believed to accelerate the metabolic process. However, what do the experts say about this? Is it true that eating spicy before exercise is good for losing weight and building muscle? Or is it just a myth? Just take a look at the full review below!

Is it true that spicy food can speed up metabolism?

For a long time, researchers have studied the effects of spicy food on the body's metabolism. Metabolism itself is the process of processing food sources into energy. Summarized from various studies, spicy food can indeed have an effect, namely the metabolic process is up to eight percent faster.

This is because spicy foods made from chilies or peppers contain a substance called capsaicin. Capsaicin is a natural ingredient that has the effect of increasing body temperature. Then the body will burn calories faster.

With a faster metabolism, the body can produce more energy to build muscle. However, to get this benefit you have to eat very large portions of chilies. So, although eating spicy food can speed up your metabolism, the effect will not really be felt on your body.

Can I eat spicy food before exercising?

Although chilies have good benefits for your metabolism, you should avoid eating spicy foods before exercise. This is because the benefits you get may not be worth the risks that may arise from eating spicy food before exercise. The following is the full explanation.

1. Dehydration

As explained above, the capsaicin content in spicy foods can have an effect on increasing body temperature. This is why after eating spicy food, you must feel stifling and hot. If after eating spicy you immediately exercise, your body temperature can immediately jump up.

To lower your body temperature, your body will produce sweat. Without just eating spicy food, you would be sweating a lot while exercising. So, eating spicy before exercise risks making you lose a lot of fluids through sweat. This can lead to dehydration. Severe dehydration can make you lose consciousness (faint).

2. Gastric acid reflux

Eating spicy food cannot cause stomach acid reflux (ulcers). However, if you have this disease, eating spicy food before exercise can trigger stomach acid to rise up into the esophagus, causing chest tightness and pain. Instead of building muscle and losing weight, you can't exercise because of recurrent stomach acid reflux.

3. Diarrhea

The capsaicin content in chilies is not easily digested by the body. Therefore, this content can get trapped in the intestines and cause irritation. The food that you consumed earlier will quickly come out again before it is completely digested by the intestines. This is what is called diarrhea.

Diarrhea will certainly greatly interfere with your sports activities. So, you should avoid eating spicy before exercise. If you do want to eat spicy food, make sure you give yourself at least four hours of time before starting to exercise.