It’s neither good, nor bad, only accurate. While most of the words in most of these columns expound upon current research, by the end they usually offer a course of action.

In other words, what starts in science ends in advice.

Quite often, however, that advice needs to be rather broad because my readers are so diverse. Judging by the emails I receive, just as many senior citizens read this column as do teens as do middle-aged adults.

That’s just one of the reasons why any advice offered in this column almost always includes an addendum that what you really need to do — regardless of your age — is alter it to suit your needs and experiment on yourself.

As March approaches April, the change of the clocks and better weather usually allow you to increase the frequency and intensity of both your exercise sessions and overall outdoor activity. While you’d expect this change to be a positive one, that’s not always the case — especially if the increases are done indiscriminately.

As a result, the goal of today’s column is to give purpose to the natural increase in exercise that usually occurs at this time of year to insure that it helps rather than hurts your health.

To give you a sense of how to do that, let’s create three hypothetical 38-year-old males who have wives, 10-year-old twins, all could stand to lose 15 pounds, and ask me for help in creating an exercise program designed to eliminate the excess weight.

Male No. 1 has been told by his doctor to lose the weight as soon as possible because he’s prediabetic. No. 2 has no pressing health issues; he just wants to look and feel better. No. 3 wants to get back to winning 5k and 10K running races — at least at the local level and in his age category.

Because of these different goals, the programs would have significant differences. While all the programs need to burn a ton of calories, that can only be the be-all and the end-all for male No. 1.

After all, whether or not he develops type 2 diabetes — and the other health complications that would probably follow — depends upon how quickly he can drop weight.

No. 2 must burn a ton of calories, too, but has a bit more latitude with the manner and the rate in which he accomplishes that. If the exercise program he pursues makes him feel good, look good, and remain motivated, the rate of the weight loss doesn’t really matter, only that it’s taking place.

In many ways, No. 3 has the toughest job because while losing weight almost always helps a runner in the long run, how the body feels and performs usually declines significantly any time exercise is increased while calories are restricted. That combination also increases the likelihood of injury.

Through these examples, it should be apparent what you need to do: decide what you want this natural increase in exercise and activity to accomplish. Accomplishing whatever end result you desire will entail a good bit of personal experimentation, but it can be lessened if you consider the different courses of action needed by the aforementioned hypothetical males.

In two of these cases, for instance, there really is no best time for the additional exercise. After other commitments are properly considered, when it occurs should be purely a matter of personal preference.

For the overweight male on the cusp of type 2 diabetes, however, exercising in the morning on an empty stomach is so beneficial that, as his trainer, I would insist upon it.

The morning meal is named breakfast because that’s what it does: it “breaks” the natural abstention of food, or “fast,” that occurs from sleeping. Because of this fast, both blood sugar levels and the amount of energy stored in the muscles are low.

As a result, the fuel for early-morning exercise done on an empty stomach comes from the fat stores, which obviously aids in weight loss. The tradeoff is that stored fat is an inferior exercise fuel compared to just consumed carbohydrates, so early-morning exercise sessions tend to lack intensity and get performed at a steady pace.

But that’s perfect for the prediabetic primarily concerned with losing weight quickly because two shorter daily sessions do this better than one longer session, since your body continues to burn calories at a higher-than-sedentary rate after exercise.

For exactly how long what exercise physiologists have dubbed “the afterburn” occurs is still in question, but no one denies its existence. So the best strategy for maximal caloric-burn during the day for someone who’s less than a seriously competitive athlete is to follow an early-morning bout of exercise on an empty stomach with a second one before or after supper.

Two exercise sessions per day, however, is more than just the best prescription for weight loss. It doubles as a recipe for exercise burnout, something that all three of our hypothetical males need to avoid.

For more on avoiding exercise burnout to make the increased amount of physical activity that occurs with the warmer weather help rather than hurt you, read next week’s column.