Have a sluggish or slower metabolism? Gain weight from just about anything you eat? While it is true that fighting a predisposed metabolism rate may be difficult, it is by no means a lost cause. So don’t lose heart when you read that metabolism rates are encoded in your genes. While that may be true, it is also the case that with a little extra work, you can get great results. But to begin to change your metabolism, you first need to understand what it is.

What does it mean to say you have a Faster or Slower Metabolism Rate?

Metabolism simply refers to the act of breaking down food and turning it into energy. This is further divided into two kinds- anabolism and catabolism. While anabolism refers to the direct breaking down of the food you eat into other useful products for the body, catabolism refers to the breaking down of muscle and tissue protein that occurs after any sort exercise, and which results in the elimination of toxins and other wastes from your body.

A higher metabolism rate means that both these processes occur faster in your body, helping you to remain more active and preventing your body from putting up weight. While a slower metabolism usually means that you will have a tendency to put on weight easily and also feel sluggish or tired.

While there can be both people with slower and faster metabolism rates, excesses on either side can be harmful and are usually caused by a disorder or malfunctioning of endocrine glands.

What you can do to Speed up that Metabolism?

The main key to increasing your metabolism rate is exercise. As generally understood, exercise may be of any of three types:

1. Cardiovascular: This is usually intense exercise that uses the heart and lungs to their maximum capacity. Spinning, mountain biking or running can be good examples of this.

2. Aerobic: Refers to a less strenuous form of cardiovascular exercise where the lungs and heart are pushed to a slightly lower intensity, for e.g. walking, swimming, etc.

3. Resistance training: This is any kind of exercise involving weight-bearing activities. It is very useful to strengthen bones, ligaments and muscles.

Remember however, that for any of these to impact your metabolism positively, they must be performed for 30-60 minutes per session.

How does Exercise help in Increasing Metabolism?

Exercise basically helps increase your metabolism for 12 hours after you finish with your exercise session. This means that post exercise, even while resting, you burn more calories from your food. Usually, about 3/5th energy from food is used for basic body functions such as breathing, circulation, repair, etc. those with higher metabolisms use more of this energy. The rest of the energy, if not used in exercises like walking, household chores, etc, gets stored in the body, making it put on weight. Thus, if you happen to be part of the majority with a slower metabolism, regular exercise is your best bet. Not only will this help you keep your weight in check, it will also, seemingly paradoxically, make you feel more energetic!

Author Bio: For more information please visit our Online HIPAA Training

Category: Wellness, Fitness and Diet
Keywords: Aerobic,Cardiovascular,anabolism,catabolism,food,Metabolism,Online HIPAA Training