Does a Cold Stomach Mean Your Body Is Burning Fat?
Although we generally feel hot and sweaty after a workout, our stomachs might sometimes feel cold. Does this mean fat is getting burned or has your stomach gone cold due to other reasons? Is this a good sign?
A cold stomach doesn't necessarily mean fat is being burned—it's a natural response to the workout you did. Exercise boosts metabolism and causes heat production, so a cold stomach is one of the mechanisms for cooling the body down and preventing it from overheating. However, it doesn't mean your workout wasn't effective at burning fat either.
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What Does a Cold Stomach Mean?
During the process called thermogenesis, the body produces heat—and for heat to be produced, fuel needs to burn. Our body burns calories, from glucose or fat, to create energy and generate heat.
Exercise Associated Thermogenesis (EAT) occurs during your workout when calories are burned for this activity. Eating food also causes thermogenesis, and this varies according to food types, which is known as the thermal effect of food.
All this combined heats up the body too much, resulting in a cold stomach as the body tries to manage the heat. To prevent the body from overheating, the body gets rid of the extra heat through the following:
Skin Temperature
As you exercise, your metabolism rises, and heat is produced. Skin produces sweat to remove the toxins from the body, dissipate the heat, and cool down your body. This increased perspiration can cause a cold stomach.
Blood Diversion
When we exercise, the body diverts blood to areas where it's most needed at the moment. This includes the heart, lungs, skeletal muscles, and even the brain. When blood is diverted from your stomach to other areas of the body, your stomach may feel cold too.
Bottom Line
A cold stomach can occur due to many reasons—it can be the aftereffect of exercise, or the result of blood being diverted from the stomach to muscles, lungs, etc. during exercise. However, a cold stomach can also be a symptom of an infection or a medical condition, so it's best to consult a medical professional if it persists. Whatever the reason behind your cold stomach, it's unlikely to be an exclusive sign of fat-burning.
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Asked 4 months ago