Are you struggling to lose weight despite working out consistently and eating carefully?
Are you struggling to lose weight despite working out consistently and eating carefully? Were you losing weight until recently but now you’re stuck? Did you used to be super fit but now with the same effort, you can’t seem to get as lean? If this sounds like you, your metabolism could be damaged.
The word “metabolism” is thrown around a lot these days. You probably already know that if your metabolism is too slow you might gain weight. But what exactly does this all mean? Technically, metabolism is the word to describe all of the biochemical reactions that take place in your body. It’s how you take in nutrients and oxygen and use them to fuel your body.
Your metabolic rate is how fast your metabolism works, it is measured in calories. The calories you eat can go to one of three places
As you can imagine the more calories you burn as work or creating heat the easier it is to lose weight and keep it off because there will be fewer “leftover” calories to store for later.
There are a couple of different ways to measure metabolic rate. One is your “resting metabolic rate” (RMR) which is how much energy your body uses when you’re not being physically active. The other is the “total daily energy expenditure” (TDEE) which measures both the resting metabolic rate as well as the energy used for “work” (e.g. exercise) throughout a 24-hour period.
In a nutshell: a lot! The first thing you might think of that affects it is your thyroid. This gland at the front of your throat releases hormones to tell your body to “speed up” your metabolism. Of course, the more thyroid hormone there is the faster things will work and the more calories you’ll burn. But that’s not the only thing that affects your metabolic rate.
How big you are affects it too! Larger people have higher metabolic rates, but your body composition is also important! As you can imagine muscles that actively move and do work need more energy than fat does. So the more lean muscle mass you have, the more energy your body will burn and the higher your metabolic rate will be. Even when you’re not working out. This is why weight training is now recommended as a part of a weight loss program. The more lean muscle you have, the more calories for you.
When people lose weight their metabolic rate often slows down which is really the last thing that you want to happen. So you definitely want to offset that by building more muscle mass. This is why I love Cardio Pilates. It is a combination of weight training and aerobic exercise combined. Sometimes we use dumbbells and sometimes we use resistance equipment or just body weight. This workout tones and strengthens your core while burning fat, building muscle and burning calories. The next Cardio Pilates course starts on 19th Feb. CLICK HERE for more info and to book.
The type of food you eat also affects your metabolic rate. Your body actually burns calories to absorb, digest, and metabolise your food. This is called the “thermic effect of food” (TEF). You can use it to your advantage when you understand how your body metabolises foods differently. For example fats increase your TEF by 0-3%; carbs increase it by 5-10%, and protein increases it by 15-30%. By trading some of your fat or carbs for lean protein you can slightly increase your metabolic rate. Another bonus of protein is that your muscles need it to grow. By working your muscles out and feeding them what they need, they will help you to not only lose weight but keep it off. Why not try out my high protein recipe for Lemon Herd Roasted Chicken below. Don’t forget the mind-body connection. There is plenty of research that shows the influence that things like stress and sleep have on the metabolic rate. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to metabolism and how so many different things can work to increase or decrease your metabolic rate.
Serves 4
2 lemons, sliced
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 tablespoon thyme
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
dash salt & pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive old
Preheat oven to 200C. Layer ½ of the lemon slices on the bottom of a baking dish. Sprinkle with ½ of the herbs and ½ of the sliced garlic.
Place the chicken breasts on top and sprinkle salt & pepper. Place remaining lemon, herbs and garlic on top of the chicken. Drizzle with olive oil. Cover with a lid or foil.
Bake for 45 minutes until chicken is cooked through. If you want the chicken to be a bit more “roasty” then remove the lid/foil and broil for another few minutes (watching carefully not to burn it).
Serve & enjoy!
Tip: You can add a leftover sliced chicken breast to your salad for lunch the next day!
References:
https://authoritynutrition.com/10-ways-to-boost-metabolism
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