What Is Metabolism?

Many articles on this blog talk about metabolism and how important it is to keep your body’s metabolism running smoothly and efficiently. What is metabolism? Why do we talk about it so much? Why is it such an important part of your body’s make-up?

The simple definition for metabolism is the “sum of all biochemical processes that are involved in the body” or the sustaining of life. In our application, which is concerned with health, metabolism is related to the intake and use of food, our ability to utilize food to the fullest extent.

Each person’s metabolism is unique. No two people metabolize food at the same rate. Therefore no two people have the same metabolism.  We all use our calories at different rates, with different results.  Our metabolism, like our fingerprints is unique to each of us.  But we need understand and accommodate our metabolism.

METABOLISM: FAST OR SLOW?

Do you know someone who eats whatever they want and never gains an ounce? Disgusting, isn’t it? These types of people have very high rates of metabolism. What does that mean? When they consume food, their bodies burn it up almost as fast as they consume it.

Then there are the rest of us. Those of us who use our food intake so slowly we don’t even notice that we’re burning calories.  The people who burn quickly are often slim and trim, the people who burn more slowly are the people with a tendency toward being overweight and obese.

The metabolic process is related to our calorie intake, our vitamin and nutrition needs, our thyroid and endocrine production, and how well all of these processes come together.  If you can raise someone’s metabolic rate, you are then better able to control the burn of calories, especially for overweight or obese people. 

This would make the goal of better or improved health a much easier reality for those people.  Efforts to date have produced very little results.  There are foods that we can consume that naturally raise our metabolic rate, but not to a great extent.  What we need is a way to directly alter the rate.  We need to be able to raise our metabolism to a point where we can actually see a benefit. 

 

HOW TO INCREASE METABOLISM

The most effective way to increase metabolism comes from exercise and building muscle mass, while reducing body fat.  Adding more muscle to the body causes it to burn more calories. This helps to elevate the body’s metabolic rate, increasing the rate of calorie burning.

How your metabolism functions depends largely on how well you take care of your nutritional needs. The process of burning calories and creating energy is a delicate one, and one which must be carefully tended, or it can easily become imbalanced.  It is often through these natural imbalances that we tend to “inherit’ our metabolic rate. 

Pay attention to your specific needs. Only you know how your body responds to eating and exercise.  If you know you have a tendency to gain weight, increase your exercise efforts and follow a healthy eating plan. Keep working at it until you achieve the balance that works for you.