flickr user: abraj

Sure, everyone knows how to lose weight, it’s just diet and exercise, right?  I won’t argue the science but I will add that attitude, behavior and metabolism can play a part too.  Having a positive attitude helps just about everything, altering behaviors that don’t serve you and what you are up to will both empower you and result in effective weight loss.  So, what about the mysteries of metabolism?  We’ve all heard people say, or maybe we’ve said it ourselves, ‘I have a slow metabolism,’ or ‘metabolism slows with age’.  But how true are these statements and what is metabolism?

The metabolism is based on the number of calories we burn throughout the day.  Our body is constantly burning calories to keep us going whether we are sleeping, running, cleaning, digesting food, regulating body temperature or eating.  The excess calories that are not used to get you through your day get stored, mostly in the form of fat.  Simply, if you take in more calories than you use, you’ll gain weight over time.

Some things to note about metabolism:

• Your mechanical and thermometric functions to maintain normal bodily functions use about 60-75% of your energy or calories.
• Your body uses about 10% of calories to digest and metabolize food.  The amount of calories you burn vary with the types of food you eat.  You burn more calories breaking down chicken than a banana.  Very few calories are expended breaking down simple sugars.
• Your resting metabolism depends on your age, physical condition, amount of fat vs. muscle.
• Generally your metabolism slows starting in your mid thirties by 3 to 5% per decade.  So, when you reach 55 you require about 150 fewer calories per day than when you were in your mid thirties.  For that reason, aim to cut back 100-200 calories a day as you reach a new decade, or increase your activity level.
• Men generally have a 10-15 % faster BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) than women because the male body has a greater percentage of lean muscle tissue.
• Here is the BMR calculation by the World Health Organization:  Female = [ 655+(9.6 x Weight in kilogram) + (1.7 x Height in centimeter) – (4.7 x Age) ] Male = [ 66+(13.7 x Weight in kilogram) + (5 x Height in centimeter) – (6.8 x Age) ].  WebMD also has a calculator here.

Possible causes of low metabolism:

• Fasting
• A low calorie diet
• Lack of physical activity.
• Snacking on high sugar foods throughout the day (such as candy, soda, desserts and gum).
• Eating too much sugar containing foods.
• Loss of muscle.
• Under active thyroid (consult your physician)

Possible ways to speed up metabolism:

• Eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day.  Starving slows the metabolism.
• Exercise!
• Build more muscle.  One pound of fat burns 2 calories a day, one pound of muscle burns 50 calories a day.
• Cut out (or at least cut down!) consumption of sugar and alcohol.
• Avoid fasting.
• Drink water!  8-10 glasses a day.
• Eat nutritious food that fuels you, aim for less processed food, with a balance of complex carbs, healthy fats and lean proteins.
• Some ingredients thought to boost the metabolism are: chili pepper, mustard, green tea, garlic and dietary fibers.  This article on ecosalon lists some other great foods too.

Whether you are chasing your two year old, playing golf, dancing, cleaning, walking, spinning, lifting weights, kickboxing or swimming keep it going for lasting health benefits.  Being physically active is the most effective way to increase your metabolism and lead to weight loss.

flickr user: albertopveiga

Yours in Health,

Kardio Kate

Posted in Main at February 16th, 2010 by Kardio Kate
Tags: Exercise, Weight loss
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