What is Metabolism in the human body...and does it aid Weight-Loss?

There has been a lot of interest over the years about whether our metabolism aids weight-loss. Our body needs energy to do the most basic of things, even sleeping requires levels of energy. The simple definition of metabolism is the chemical reaction in the body that changes food to energy to allow us to thrive.

There are thousands of metabolic reactions occurring in our body all the time enabling us to stay healthy.  It is not a single thing that you can control, it is happening in every cell in our body giving us the fuel to carry on with our daily lives.

The energy = calories and our ‘basal’ metabolic rate is how many calories we need to keep functioning when we are resting.

Our major organs, heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and brain use about 50% of the consumption of energy when we are rested.  The rest of our body uses up what's left.

How does our body use the energy/ fuel we give it?

There are 3 ways our body burns the fuel/calories.

• The ‘basal’ metabolism – this is when we are resting – the largest consumption of energy
• Breaking down the food in our digestive system about 10%
• To carry out physical activities between 10-30%

 https://www.vox.com/2016/5/18/11685254/metabolism-definition-booster-weight-loss

There is still very little known about a person’s metabolic rate and why one person can eat a large meal and not put on any weight. And a similar sized person, same age, sex etc. must control their calories to maintain a healthy weight.

Does my sex and my age impact on my metabolic rate?

Yes, women burn less energy/calories than men.  This can be effected in some women during the last phase of their menstrual cycle, the basal rate can rise up as much as 10%. 

And yes age also impacts for many people, generally we burn less energy when resting at 60 years old than we do at 16. This is a gradual decline that happens over a long period of time and there is still very little science available to help explain this phenomenon.

Are there certain foods that can help increase my metabolic rate?

If you google this question and you will be bombarded with different diet products.  Which claim to contain more of a certain ingredient which some studies have shown will have a very slight impact on how many additional calories you will burn. Capsicum for example, which is found in chilli peppers, can increase the number of calories you burn but only by about 50. And that depends on how much of it you eat and this could be quite an extreme way to burn an additional 50 calories. 

If you are looking for a quick fix to change how your body processes food, I am afraid there isn’t one. 

Everyone’s body operates on a different level.  I work with my clients to understand their individual needs and energy levels. We then create a program for twelve weeks that’s designed specifically to suit them.

How does dieting affect my metabolic rate?

Unfortunately and you are not going to want to hear this, dieting, especially crash diets, have a negative impact on weight loss.  They also have a long term effect on your metabolic rate. A study published by the American journal Obesity followed the contestants from the reality show ‘The Biggest Loser’. They found that six years after the show, 13 of the 14 contestants had regained most of the weight loss.  Although between them they had lost a huge amount of weight in a very short period of time.  And 4 of them were heavier than when they had gone onto the show.

The 30-week weight loss and extreme exercise program had changed their metabolic rate, slowing it down and this was still the case 6 years later.

Is there a solution to sustaining a healthy weight?

Like most things, changing attitudes to your body and your relationship with food takes time. My 12-week program works around you and your lifestyle. We create a unique plan that works specifically for you and supported by zoom calls over the 3 months where I mentor and coach you on your journey.

Take that first step and book in for a free consultation and we can explore a coaching program that works for you.