A study from Harvard University has found that starting a fitness regime before your diet, could be the key to losing weight.
Researchers analysed a number of weight-loss studies to see if there was a cognitive link between physical activity and eating habits.
Lead researcher, Miguel Alonso, said: "Physical exercise seems to encourage a healthy diet.
"In fact, when exercise is added to a weight-loss diet, treatment of obesity is more successful and the diet is adhered to in the long run."
The research, published in Obesity Reviews, found that exercise helps to increase our awareness of being full, therefore making us less likely to overeat.
It was also found that working out causes changes in the working and structure of the brain.
"Regular exercise improves outputs in tests that measure the state of the brain's executive functions and increases the amount of grey matter and prefront connections."
One of the functions of the brain is inhibitory control, which helps people to self-regulate their behaviour – such as giving in to cravings.
They concluded that in the long-run exercise can "help us to resist the many temptations that we are faced with everyday in a society where food, especially hypercaloric food, is more and more omnipresent".
If you're still having trouble resisting those cravings, read our tip on how to stay motivated on your diet:
