WHAT'S THE MAXIMUM number of calories a human body can burn per day from exercise, and is it possible to shatter this 'metabolic ceiling' over time? A recent study published in Current Biology set out to explore this question.
Specifically, the researchers measured calorie data from extreme athletes, like ultramarathoners who run races spanning hundreds of miles and multiple days. "Every living thing has a metabolic ceiling, but exactly what that number is, and what constrains it, is the question,” says Andrew Best, PhD, a biological anthropologist at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and lead study author.
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