This week I spoke to a couple of clients about the issue of metabolism. Metabolism in weight loss terms means the number of calories you need/expend a day. Many people feel they suffer from a slow metabolism and want to know how to speed it up. Before we get into that we need to take note of what is meant by metabolism.
The issue of how many calories you “need” per day is open to debate. For me the more sensible term for metabolism is the point you start to gain fat. The fat gaining threshold is the point at which if you eat any more calories you will gain fat. This is your metabolism. Note – not all calories are created equal as I will discuss later on but for ease of discussion lets say they are. Also, how much you move affects calorie intake but lets also assume this is constant.
In that sense we have a few different zones – We have the fat gaining threshold –
If you reduce calories too much then at some point you will down regulate metabolism, here your energy intake is so low that you have no energy, strong cravings, zero motivation to exercise and fat loss is slower than expected as the body protects itself.
Somewhere between the two you will have an ideal zone of calories where you feel alive as a human yet still able to lose body fat –
Accelerating Metabolism
The most powerful way to build metabolism is to eat right on the fat gaining threshold. When you do this consistently you will slowly and gradually start increasing the threshold, e..g you raise metabolism so you burn more calories per day. When the body raises its metabolism (can take days to weeks) you would then need to raise your calorie intake upwards again so you are once more eating on the threshold and hold it there until it raises once more.
Another way to raise metabolism is to stop doing things that decrease metabolism. One way is not taking your food intake below the starvation threshold where significant reductions in metabolic rate can occur. By consistently under eating (especially if greatly under eat) your body will shut down and slow its own metabolism (the opposite of raising your metabolic rate). However, by definition any time you cut your food intake below the fat gaining threshold you reduce your metabolism to some degree, so this becomes more a sliding scale than a black or white line in the sand.
Calorie intake is one of the most powerful ways to accelerate (or decelerate) metabolism. Other factors also affect this issue. The foods you eat will raise or lower your metabolism. Eating sensitive foods is a sure fire way to lower how many calories you need, this is why I use the term heavy and light calories to explain how consuming the same calories on paper can have different effect on your body. The troublesome foods clog up your calorie burning ability so you actually need less to survive (you have decelerated your metabolic rate temporarily). Different people believe certain foods slow metabolism, some point the finger at unsaturated oils amongst others.
Many supplement products work on raising your metabolism through using caffeine or more potent chemicals than this. I have discussed this previously in blogs about why this strategy is not going to work except for body builders at the end of cutting period pre competition. Most supplement or metabolism boosters raise it while you are taking them, it doesnt improve your metabolism, it raises yoru daily calorie needs. This is the same effect as exercise, see below.
Raising your calorie needs vs raising your metabolism
Your metabolism is how much energy your body is burning in its natural state when food choices and exercise are constant. Your daily calorie needs are how many calories you need that day where foods sources and exercise amounts may change.
You can force your body to burn more calories in a day by exercising more but that is not the same as the strength of your metabolism.
Exercise can increase or decrease metabolism. Short term cardio exercise is powerful in increasing your calorie needs of the day but it is not very effective at raising your metabolism (how many calories you burn when food and exercise is accounted for). Weight training by its more anabolic nature favours calorific restoration however any highly fatiguing exercise has the potential to reduce metabolism.
Metabolism and Your Goals
This does not make exercise bad nor does it make reducing food consumption bad. It is just giving us a window into how the body is working and what we need to do to get results. For health and to make losing fat easier, the more calories our body naturally burns per day (metabolism) the easier it is to get results. For body transformations though you will have to reduce calorie intake/increase daily needs to lose body fat… It is simply about balance and strategy.
For anyone who has achieved their goal body fat levels then increasing metabolism should definitely be the next step. This is also applicable to people who want to optimise health, increase muscle or sports performance. Increasing metabolism through eating more brings with it a whole host of new challenges many people have never experienced. It is not as easy as you think because the food increase is through “clean” foods and any unexpected eating errors immediately produce fat gain.
February 20th – March 12th (10/19 days measured)
I finished up my 7 week muscle building phase at the end of February before heading off to Rome for the weekend. I have gained some solid amounts of muscle plus the inevitable slight body fat increase. Post Rome I took a 1 week fat loss phase so I could begin the next 7 week weight gain phase not too far from my ideal body fat range. It was a great fat loss phase, i dropped my calorie intake from the usual 2200 to 1900-2000 and added in more cardio through long (3 hour plus) dog walk….happy dog….happy body!
The figures below show the balance of muscle gain vs fat loss phases.
Diet – Protein – 205g, Carbs – 278g, fat – 51g, calories – 2392, P:34 % C :46% F: 19%
Exercise – 18 Weights sessions, 2 fitness sessions and 6 off days
Weight – 73.5kg Body fat – 48mm* start fat loss phase, 41mm* at end
Supplements – Protein shake (max 40g per day) and glycine through gelatine (20-30g), creatine (20g-30g) and BCAA (8-10g)
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*This is my own 10 point self measurement system, it does not correlate to body fat scores. At a guess 40mm – 8%, 50mm – 9.5%, 60mm – 11%, 70mm – 12.5%. I do not take it everyday if looking to gain muscle or maintain as it puts me off wanting to eat more. If on fat loss phase I take it daily. Like any body fat measurement system, as you get to low body fat levels the number become less accurate or reliable.
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Clapham – For Personal Training Clapham please contact me. I am available for sessions in homes, private gyms or Clapham Common Personal Training
