Combustion processes take place in the power houses of our cells, the mitochondria, which produce energy and produce residues. Energy sources and oxygen are necessary for this combustion process. Basically, the organism uses two essential sources of energy, sugar (glucose) and fat (fatty acids).
When a fatty acid is “burned” (e.g. palmitic acid) C15H31COOH + 23 O2 reacts to 16 CO2 + 16. The fatty acid requires 23 molecules of oxygen for combustion, resulting in 16 molecules of carbon dioxide (CO2) and 16 molecules of water (H2O). Carbon dioxide is exhaled and water is excreted.
With sugar (glucose) it looks like this:
C6H12O6 + 6 O2 react to form 6 CO2 + 6 H2O Glucose only needs 6 molecules of oxygen for oxidation and 6 molecules of CO2 and 6 H2O are formed.
From the equations it is very clear that the oxidation of fat requires almost four times as much oxygen as the burning of sugar.
From these chemical equations you can see very clearly that good fat burning is significantly dependent on the amount of oxygen available to the cell.
In the case of untrained and possibly overweight people, there is often not enough oxygen to burn fat. This can be improved through lifestyle changes, slowly increasing exercise and a healthier diet.
Afterburn effect after exercise: