Your body’s muscle cells are very active, even when you’re not exercising. When you’re moving around during the day going about your regular activities and/or exercising, your muscles have a very high demand for fuel to keep them going. When you’re resting, your muscle cells are still at work burning calories. This contributes to your metabolism.
Am I Stuck With My Slow Metabolism?
Your metabolism is simply the rate at which you burn calories. Everyone has a different metabolic rate. Some have a very high metabolism while others have a slower one. While some factors that influence metabolism are genetic, you’re not exactly stuck with the metabolic rate you have right now.
The Reason Metabolism Slows Down as You Get Older
Use It or Lose It: Muscle Wasting
When your muscles are used less and less, they don’t stay the same size. They actually gradually get smaller over time. This is called atrophy or wasting. Anyone that has ever been confined to a bed during illness has surely noticed this.
People who go on yo-yo diets experience something similar. When they don’t eat enough calories, the body breaks down muscle tissue (protein) to use as fuel. Yes, you can eat yourself if you don’t eat right. Doing this sabotages the weight loss effort because the dieter has decreased their metabolism because they have lost muscle. To make matters worse, this causes weight to be gained back as fat.
How to Increase Your Metabolism: What Science Says
According to a 1994 study published in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition[1], older adults increased their metabolism by 7% after 12 weeks of strength exercises. A similar 1994 study[2] in 50 to 65 year-old men reported that their resting metabolism was increased almost 8% after doing strength exercises.
Not only does science say that strength training increases your resting metabolism. A 1993 research study[3] showed that metabolism is instantly increased by 12% right after strength training for about two hours.
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