Whenever people want to drop some weight, they tend to focus on how they can increase their metabolism. Let’s start here by simply defining what metabolism is: at its most basic, it is how you convert fuel (the food you eat) into energy. Your metabolism affects your overall health, not just whether you can lose weight or not.
Increasing metabolism seems like the answer to successful weight loss, but in reality life and metabolism are more complex than that. We are presented daily with all kinds of environmental stressors and simply having a faster metabolism won’t address those changes. There is much written and spoken about today that suggests we want to be an effective fat burner as opposed to a sugar burner. Both fat and sugar are fuels our bodies recognize and use depending on the need.
So rather than just focusing on having a faster metabolism, perhaps the better goal is to have a flexible metabolism that can use both types of fuel efficiently. I did a newsletter about why it is important to be metabolically flexible and you can read that here. I share several simple ways to increase your metabolic flexibility such as intermittent fasting, exercise, cutting carb intake and increasing healthy fats.
.A few other things you might consider doing are eating more protein, which increases thermogenesis (fat burning); making sure to drink enough water to stay well hydrated. I’ve written about this numerous times. My basic recommendation is one-half your body weight in ounces and including ¼ tsp of natural, unprocessed salt for every 32 oz. Fun fact: drinking 16 oz. of water 30 minutes before a meal increases metabolic rate by 30%! Include spices like turmeric, cinnamon, cayenne and ginger in your foods as often as possible as they are known to boost metabolism. And as mentioned in the newsletter above, exercise, specifically weight training, which improves your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
There are other things you can do but for the purposes of this post, just know that being flexible is more important than being fast!
Do you think you are metabolically flexible? Why or why not?
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I think I am, Ann. I don’t get highs or lows. I can fast easily. I exercise fasted. I just feel like my body can go with the flow. And I really, really, really enjoy it. Hopefully I can maintain it as I age.
That’s awesome Holly. And I have no doubt that you will.
Always thought losing weight was about eating less and moving more. I’ve proved that wrong. LOL Thanks for the info Ms. Ann. Always appreciated ma’am.
I hear you my friend. If only it was that simple.
Ann, there are so many diets now. Paleo, Keto, vegan, gluten-free, grain-free. It can be confusing. I’m heading over to your newsletter!
Oh Debbie – come!! I hear you. It gets so confusing and overwhelming when in reality there is no one perfect diet for everyone.
That’s why my plan is a blueprint people can adapt and adjust to their changing needs. Thank you as always for reading and commenting.