Effects of excess post-exercise oxygen consumption and resting metabolic rate in energetic cost

The constant growth of obesity and overweight only goes to show the need of intervention to reverse those figures. In this context, physical activity can contribute with a double effect, through acute and chronic physiological changes: in the first condition one can find the energetic cost from exercising and recovery (EPOC – excess post-exercise oxygen consumption), and in the second, the resting metabolic rate (RMR). Thus, this revision’s goal was to investigate the effect of EPOC and RMR as supporting factors in weight-control programs, willing to discuss the different results found in literature, concerning both magnitude and length of EPOC, as well as discussing the effects of exercising in RMR. Research shows, in general terms, that the most intense exercises are able to promote a bigger EPOC when compared to exercises of lower intensity, while a bigger EPOC was found in resistive exercises when compared to aerobic ones. Concerning RMR changes, the acute results show significant increase at it; however, long-term results are more discrepant, due to the difficulty in measuring this variable without overestimating it. In summary, literature points that periodicity of a training that can maximize both EPOC and RMR may be an important factor to weight-losing and, although energetic cost of these variables in a therapy session seem rather small, it can be significant in a long-term relation. However, new studies are important to confirm these evidences.