Human body requires food as the source of energy. We consume food and have the body store in two different formats. One of the ways is to store in muscles and liver for immediate use in a form called glycogen. When the capacity to store in muscle and liver is exceeded, then the body store food in a form of fat for much later usage, which this will be the second way of storing food in our body.
Basics of Metabolism
Metabolism is our body’s way to process food into energy through chemical reactions. Then there is a term metabolic rate which measures the rate in which the food is converted into energy. When someone exercises the body will be using more energy, therefore, the metabolic rate will be higher than at rest. Metabolic rate can be different when the body size is different. When the person is 280lb the body will need more energy compared with someone who is 150lb.
There are several factors that affect the metabolic rate.
First is, as mentioned earlier, the body size. This can be attained by muscles mass and/or fat mass. Because of higher mitochondria (an organelle in our cells responsible for creating energy) counts in muscles cells, muscle mass will have better metabolic rate than having more fat mass.
Second is hormonal ratio between insulin and glucagon. While the insulin level is high, the metabolic rate is low because the body is in storing mode. While the glucagon level is high, the metabolic rate is high because the body is in spending mode. In other words, frequent eating will lower the metabolism because of frequent insulin spike regardless of how low the caloric intake is.
Third factor that affect metabolic rate is activity level. Higher the physical activity is the higher the energy requirement will be, which also means that the body will need to have higher metabolic rate.
Lastly, frequency of meal, as mentioned earlier. This is connecting with second factor, hormonal ratio between insulin and glucagon. When we eat, regardless of portion size, the body will secrete insulin. Therefore, more frequently we eat we produce insulin more frequently. Of course, what we eat determines how much insulin the pancreas would produce, however, while the insulin level is up, the body is in storing mode, hence the metabolic rate would taper down.
Nutrition and Metabolism
There are several factors that cause the metabolic rate to become lower to the point we feel lack of energy and not able to lose weight despite the lower calorie diet.
First is calorie restricting diet. Lowering calories to lose weight is working against our physiology. It may work for awhile and then not only the weight loss slows down but can also gain weight back even when you are following the number accurately.
For example, lets assume the person needs 2000 calories a day but needs to lose weight. With calorie restriction diet what typically people are looking for is caloric deficit of 3500 calories which in theory you should be losing about 1lb of body fat. To put these number in practice people generally cut down calorie intake or amount of food we consume. To keep the conversation simple, let’s say that we are cutting down 500 calories from our daily requirements which leads to 1500 calories. When this person work on this diet for 7 days, the calorie deficit will be 3500 calories per week, therefore, this person should be losing 1lb per week. Majority of times people add exercise to compliment more calorie deficit. Assume each workout help the person burn off 500 calories and maintain this program for 7 days per week. Now this person can lose extra 1lb per week.
Does this happen? In theory yes, but physiologically, no. Because of sudden change, body may lose up to 10lb, however, then weight loss tapers down.
Why?
The 2000 calorie intake requirement that body needed is now dropped down to 1500 calories. Now the new norm for calorie requirement will be 1500 calories. Then the trainer or nutritionist will claim that you are not creating enough calorie deficit and advise you to cut down more food and move more. So, you obediently lower the calorie intake to about 1200 calories and force your body to add more exercise during the day. You may lose few pounds again, but the body will create another new set point to 1200 calories. Around this time the body will send a hunger hormone called ghrelin and makes you hungry more frequently. Then the advice will be given to consume more frequent but smaller meal like 5-6 times per day to suppress the hunger hormone. At this point your metabolic rate is dropped from 2000 calories to 1200 calories and consuming more frequently. You will start feeling fatigue, not able to stay awake at work, muscle recovery is no longer existing, and the weight that you have lost may start creeping back up even when your calorie intake is still at 1200 calories and trainers will claim that it is muscle gain. However, this is a great recipe to lower the metabolic rate and create insulin resistance at the same time.
But wait, then how about intermittent fasting? Is it different from low calorie diet? The answer is “it is different”. When you are not consuming food, the body automatically shift the energy use to stored energy called fat because the hormone called insulin has been lowered through fasting for 8, 12, 16, 24 hours. Therefore, we don’t starve to death when we are sleeping. Simply put body knows how to make up for the difference when you are in fasted state.
With calorie restricted diet, you could be still eating 5-6 small meals per day and because insulin spikes, regardless of consuming low or non-calorie food, the body wants to store. So with intermittent fasting and you are only consuming 1200 calories versus consuming 1200 calories throughout the day, the body receive the message differently.
Is the intermittent fasting the only way to increase the metabolism from nutrition perspective? Answer is no. I, personally, only practice intermittent fasting when I need to, for example, eating out or eating with friends as my way of resetting the body. With my workout and soccer, I need to make sure that my body is storing energy to recover from my physical activities. This does not mean that I eat 5-6 meals a day. I still need to be metabolically flexible so that I can use immediate energy and stored energy as needed. Poor recovery and metabolic inflexibility may lead to lower metabolic rate or not able to maximize my metabolic potential.
Muscle and Metabolism
As mentioned previously, the body size, especially muscle mass and strength are also a key component to higher metabolic rate. Reason why muscle size and strength affect metabolic rate is it is highly inefficient and requires more energy for the body to maintain, especially the muscle size. On the other hand, when the muscle atrophies, there is less necessity for the body to have higher metabolic rate so the metabolic rate decreases.
I don’t really understand why, but many people love to debate whether strength training is better or cardio training is better for physique, health, and strength. Both are equally important. You should be lifting weights and you should be doing some type of cardiovascular training. Both will help you improve the metabolic rate. Depending on the goal ratio which you put effort in may be different.
However, if have been doing neither and planning on starting your exercise
, I would suggest starting with strength training or activity that stimulates your muscles. If you choose to run or bike, do them outdoor which will challenge you better than the machines. When you are strength training, keep in mind that strength training is not just about lifting heavy object. Especially if you have not been training in a long time or never trained before, focus more on lengthening the muscles and strengthen the joints that has not been used in the long time first.
Strength training alone does not help you build muscle or strength. You will need to feed the body properly so that body can recover from training that you just completed. This is where things can get little tricky.
If you are overweight or have insulin resistance, you don’t want to have carbohydrate as part of your recovery meal for it will stimulate your pancreas and secrete more insulin into your bloodstream. Instead, focus on consuming protein and fat source as your recovery meal until your insulin is under control.
If you are fit and know that your insulin is under control, then you can have carbohydrate which will help you recover your muscle faster which also means that you can build your muscles faster.
Message You Send Dictates Metabolic Rate
It is all about what message you are sending to your body that dictates your metabolic rate. Whether it is fat loss or muscle building you will need to understand what message you should be sending to your body so that the body will work for you.
If you need to lose fat and raise your metabolic rate, you will need to lower the insulin level. This can be done by lowering the frequency of eating. If you want to build muscles, you will need to increase your insulin so that body can store energy to recover your muscles that has been used during the physical activities.
Kota Shimada
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