When working to cut down a few pounds, it helps to understand how your metabolism system works.
Basically, metabolism refers to the chemical processes that occur in the cells and therefore your body to sustain life. These reactions include those that break down food and nutrients and those that repair the body.
Building the body requires energy. So, the amount of energy your body uses depends on your metabolic rate.
This means that if you understand your metabolism then you will know what you can with respect to your nutrition and exercise plan to align with your goals which could be to lose fat or maintain weight or even increase muscle mass.
As such, it helps to understand how metabolism works before you start a new nutrition or workout plan.
Types of Metabolism
There are usually two types of metabolism that take place in the cell.
1. Catabolic Reaction (Catabolism)
This means large molecules are broken down into smaller ones during the reaction. Typically, food is usually broken down into their simpler forms.
In their smaller size, they can be easily used to create energy and provide the building blocks for body growth and repair. For example carbohydrates get broken down into glucose and glucose is used to provide energy in the cells. Likewise fats can get broken down eventually into ketones and ketones can also be a source of energy. If a person is over exercising and not eating enough of certain nutrients such as proteins then the body may start breaking down muscle.
2. Anabolic Reaction (Anabolism)
In this reaction, small molecules join to make large complex molecules. For example, when there is more glucose in the body than it needs at that time those molecules will come together to form glycogen and this gets stored as a source of fuel for another time. In this case, when you eat more than the body needs for daily anabolism, the excess nutrients are stored as fat.
When doing an appropriate amount of strength training and eating enough protein then the body will build more muscle. When the body is injured and tissues need to be repaired that is an anabolic reaction.
Understanding Your Metabolic Rate
Your metabolic rate is typically the rate at which your body burns calories. Through the burning of calories, your body gets the necessary energy for involuntary activities, internal organs, and the nervous system.
One thing you must understand is that the rate of metabolism varies by each individual. Your rate can be affected by several factors, including:
1. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)
This is the minimal amount of energy your body uses during rest. Your body needs this energy to maintain its basic functions. The amount of lean muscle you have will impact your metabolism. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate which means your body is burning more calories at rest. If you lose muscle due to injuries, illness or unhealthy dieting practices then your metabolism will slow down meaning it burns less calories. This will make maintaining your weight after weight loss much more difficult. It will feel like your body is fighting you and working against you.
2. Physical Activities
Your hourly energy consumption increases when you engage in physical exercises. For example, the muscles can burn up to 3,000k kJ per hour during intense exertion. The amount of energy you use during exercises can be controlled. Factors that tend to affect your overall energy consumption include age, body size, the amount of lean muscle, gender, drugs, and infections.
3. Food You Eat
The basal metabolic rate also increases after eating. This is because you need energy for eating, digestion, and metabolism. Your BMR usually rises soon after you have started eating. The activity rate of your metabolic system will depend on the type and size of the food you’re eating. For example, proteins can cause the BMR to rise by 20 to 30 percent.
4. Hormones
Hormones such as thyroid, insulin, cortisol, and growth hormone all impact the metabolism. This is why stress management and getting enough sleep along with regulating blood sugar levels and focusing on strength training are all an important aspect of managing your metabolism and will either negatively or positively impact your results while trying to lose weight or maintain it
5. Age
As you age the metabolism naturally tends to slow down due to muscle loss and hormonal changes. That is why it becomes even more important to exercise and eat in a way that supports hormones and muscle growth as one gets older to reverse this trend.
Metabolism and Weight Gain
For older people, you must understand that you can’t grow taller anymore. Instead, you can only experience weight gain.
Also, people with more muscle usually use more energy. This is not the case with older people because they tend to experience muscle loss. Thus, they do not have enough lean muscle mass to use as much energy as possible. The unused energy is stored as fat. Over time, this is what leads to weight gain.
At this point, you need to start thinking about eating less of certain foods but at the same time increase your intake of protein. The focus of exercise needs to shift to strength training which is anabolic as opposed to just doing more cardio because it can be catabolic resulting in more muscle loss.
The idea here is to maintain the right balance between anabolic and catabolic reactions to maintain your weight.
Observing your dieting is important because your body cells require nutrients to maintain your BMR. Ensure to watch your fat, carbohydrates, and proteins when planning your meals. These are the main dietary components that affect your metabolism rate.
Lastly ensure you are getting adequate sleep, hydration and managing your stress. Your cells require adequate hydration to produce energy and if your sleep and stress levels are not ideal you will produce more cortisol which will breakdown muscle and increase blood sugar levels.
The Bottom Line
When working to lose weight, it’s important to understand the functioning of your metabolic system. Before starting your weight loss program, bear in mind that your sex, age, and body composition are important factors. What works for one person may not work for another since everybody’s metabolism is different and each person may have different lifestyle issues happening that are impacting their metabolism.
You’ll also need a diet plan that suits your exercise plan. This will ensure that you have the right amount of energy for certain exercises. Vitamins, such as vitamin A, niacin, B2, and pantothenic acid, are also essential in metabolism.
Understanding and taking control of your metabolic system can be a game-changer on your journey to a healthier you. Weight loss is not just a simple equation of eat less and exercise more. It is much more complex than that.
If you want to make sure you understand the factors affecting your metabolism so you can get on the best plan for you to both lose weight and increase your basal metabolic rate afterwards then Book a 15 minute Assessment Call to learn more.