Have you ever been envious of someone who deposits money in the porcelain bank daily?
Slow metabolism is a real pain, and it\’s not just that it can make it difficult to lose weight. It\’s evident that not passing your timber promptly can cause pain in your stomach, so it\’s critical to find out why your metabolism appears to be sluggish. And, even more importantly, what you can do to increase your metabolism\’s pace.
What is the mechanism of metabolism?
We all have a basic understanding of metabolism. When the scales don\’t seem to be in your favor, sluggish metabolism is usually to blame.
Of course, many of us have encountered naturally slim people who say that their physique is due to their lightning-fast metabolism.
But how does metabolism function, and is it true that a sluggish metabolism means slim chances of losing weight?
Metabolism is a vital internal mechanism in your body that transforms food into energy so that your body can continue to function.
Your heart is pounding and your body is warm because your metabolism converts everything you eat into energy. Even when you\’re asleep, your metabolism is at work.
When it comes to weight and metabolism, the basic concept is straightforward:
- Slow metabolism means fewer calories are consumed, which means more calories are retained as fat.
- Your body can not store as many calories if you have a high metabolism.
The unfortunate reality is that your metabolism\’s pace is largely dictated by your genes.
Every individual has a base metabolic rate that is determined by three factors: age, gender, and genetics. Your metabolism slows down as you grow older. Women\’s metabolisms are naturally slower than men\’s.
The base rate accounts for roughly 70% of your metabolism, and it\’s the part you can\’t influence with your lifestyle.
However, you have power over the remaining 30%. According to experts, physical activity accounts for about 20-25 percent of your metabolism, while the rest is determined by your dietary habits.
There\’s still some positive news in terms of weight loss. According to Dr. Chih-Hao Lee of Harvard\’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, metabolism is just a minor factor in weight loss; diet and exercise are still the most important factors.
This ensures that having a sluggish metabolism would not prevent you from achieving your ideal weight.
How to Boost a Sluggish Metabolism
According to Dr. Lee, you do not need to make major lifestyle changes to speed up your metabolism. Essentially, you need to burn calories faster, and minor changes to your diet and exercise routine will suffice.
Here are a few suggestions to aid you in your search for a faster metabolism.
Strengthening exercises
While strength training might not be your cup of tea, there are many reasons why you should incorporate it into your weekly routine.
The fact that men have more muscle mass than women contributes to their faster metabolism. Muscle burns more energy than fat, so the more muscle mass you have, the quicker your metabolism will be.
You won\’t gain muscle mass when doing aerobic workouts, so just burning fat isn\’t enough. So, a small amount of strength training could be the key to speeding up your metabolism. If you don\’t want to enter a gym, you might use a resistance band to practice at home.
Interval preparation at a high intensity
You need to consume calories in addition to strength training, and there\’s no better way to do that than with high-intensity interval training, or HIIT.
The basic concept of HIIT is simple: if you exercise, have a brief duration of increased intensity followed by a return to your normal speed. When jogging on a treadmill, for example, increase the pace for 30 to 60 seconds before returning to your normal speed. To get the best result, repeat the pattern many times (for about 10 to 30 minutes).
According to some reports, HIIT burns 25-30% more calories than other types of physical activity. Since HIIT sessions are so short, they\’re ideal for people who lead busy lives (or who simply despise exercising – 10-30 minutes goes by so quickly that you won\’t even know you\’ve worked out).
Small, regular meals are recommended.
Consider your metabolism to be an automated assembly line. Food is burned for energy once it is placed on that side. If you keep putting food on that line, it will continue to function indefinitely. However, if you just add items to the production line regularly, the system will hibernate before it is required to function again.
That is, in essence, how the metabolism operates. When you feed, something called the thermic effect of food (TEF) occurs in your body, which is believed to speed up your metabolism. You should try to eat every 3 to 4 hours to keep your TEF steady.
Coffee and tea
This one is possibly familiar to you. While there isn\’t much evidence to support the impact of tea and coffee on metabolism, the current results are still very remarkable. Compounds present in tea and coffee, such as catechins and caffeine, have been shown to substantially increase calorie burn.
According to one study, drinking three cups of green tea a day can increase metabolism by as much as 100 calories per day.
a body of water
Your metabolism can slow down if your body is even slightly dehydrated. According to some reports, people who consumed more water burned more calories.
In addition to plain water, eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, which have a high water content naturally and will help you stay hydrated. If you don\’t like the taste of plain water, try mixing it with some lemon.
Fasting and yo-yo dieting should be avoided.
Fasting has become increasingly common in recent years. Fasting, on the other hand, is a bad idea when it comes to reversing a sluggish metabolism.
You will miss out on the TEF if you skip meals. As previously said, if you don\’t put something on your \”production line,\” it will effectively hibernate. Fasting can help you lose weight, but it does not affect your metabolism.
Yo-yo dieting and cheat days, which normally include binge eating followed by fasting, are the same. Your metabolism would be messed up if you eat irregularly (but luckily, it will bounce back when your habits are regular again).
An active lifestyle combined with a well-balanced diet is the key to a fast metabolism. Don\’t bother with cheat days, meal skipping, or missing strength training. Instead, live a happy, healthy life, and your metabolism will, to some extent, obey.
