I hope your day is off to as good of a start as mine is! We had a packed studio this morning for my Sculpt and Core classes and I just finished a snack at my desk consisting of a Dutch Chocolate flavored protein shake and a scoop of peanut butter. Doesn't take much to satisfy this Fittie, does it? We have a big golf event going on over at the club today so our grille room staff is busy serving members, so no employee lunch today. I was happy to improvise! That's why it's always important to keep healthy snacks handy, to keep that roaring hanger at bay. Plus, we know that skipping meals slows our metabolism down.
I have discussed ways to boost the metabolism on my blog before here. Now, that you know things like staying hydrated and incorporating spicy foods help fuel that metabolism fire, let's talk about some things that potentially slow it down. Avoid these at all cost!
Habits that Decrease Metabolism Efficiency
1. Going more than four hours without eating, REGULARLY: So, you may have heard of the whole "starvation mode" theory in which your body will go into this mode after 4 hours of no intake and start to store anything from that point on as fat. I'm not here to argue that idea one way or the other. I believe in and also have used intermittent fasting to cut weight and know that it works. The point that I am trying to make however, is that eating at regular intervals means that we are constantly putting fuel into our bodies, in regular but moderate intervals. This has two benefits- 1. We are providing nutrients for it to work the way it should, in the form of food and 2. We are turning our digestive system on, which essentially turns the metabolism on.
2. Consuming pesticides: may potentially interfere with your body's ability to burn energy properly. Specifically, organochlorines, a chemical found in pesticides from non-organic fruits and veggies have been linked to thyroid issues, one of key players in hormones related to metabolism.
3. Disrupting circadian rhythms: Nature, a weekly scientific journal found that, like most functions in our body that happen naturally, our internal clock keeps our metabolism chugging along at it's normal rate. The body likes to stay in homeostasis, so crossing time zones while travelling, having irregular sleep cycles whether you wake up a often during the night or go to bed and wake up at a different time every day. Also, skimping on your 7-9 hours of sleep and even eating without a semi-regular schedule can disrupt this.
4. Sitting too long: We know that being physically active, revs up the metabolism. On the flip side, the more often we are sedentary, and in longer bouts, the more likely our metabolism is to take a snooze. If you have a desk job, try to stand up and walk around every 20 minutes or so. Drive for a living? Stop every hour to use the restroom and take a quick walk and stretch.
5. Getting a Visit from TOM (Time of the month!): We wont go into too much detail here since I know I have some male readers, but it's important to know that blood loss, equals iron loss and less oxygen and nutrients to our muscles, organs, etc. According to registered dietitian and author, Tammy Lakatos Shames, one of those key nutrients is oxygen, and when O2 isn't getting to our cells, muscles and organs, our metabolism takes a big hit and energy levels drop significantly.
6. Age: Beginning at age 30 and every decade following, the metabolism drops by 2-3%. Unfortunately, we can't do anything about this one, but we can try to be better about the others to make up for this!
7. Only doing cardiovascular exercise: Although cardiovascular exercise is necessary and beneficial for the metabolism among so many other things, strength training is a key contributor to exercise. Incorporating some strength training, even light, into your weekly routine will increase overall muscle mass. The more muscle mass we have, the greater rate at which we burn calories, aka, the faster our metabolism is!
*Don't forget! If you need help with number 8, I got the goods on the best supplement out there to bridge the gap between the amount of fruits and veggies you are eating and the amount you actually should be eating. It's the best "multivitamin" out there and the only one I take. Contact me at RSofie17@gmail.com or leave a comment with your email address.
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