If you had ever had trouble losing excess fat weight, you have probably placed at least some of the blame on a slow metabolism – and you may well be right. It is true that your metabolic rate and the rate your body processes and utilizes fuel (calories) can affect your ability to shed body fat.
The causes of a slow metabolism
Here are two of the big triggers that can slow metabolism. These are the ones you can easily control so you can make sure you are not sabotaging your own weight-loss efforts.
1. Not getting enough muscle building and maintaining activity – Although it is true that as we get older our cells age and metabolize less rapidly the main reason we burn less fuel is we allow our fat burning mechanism – our muscle tissue to become un-toned and flabby and we lose this precious highly active tissue.
As up to 50 percent of our body weight is made up by our muscular system any loss will reduce the metabolic rate. This means less fuel gets burned as energy and more gets stored as excess body fat. Without proper strengthening exercise an adult will lose around one half pound of muscle tissue per year and this rate doubles after age 50.
2. Eating the wrong types of food and too much of them – If we eat mainly processed type convenience foods (the ones in pretty boxes and packets) we take in a lot of unhealthy chemicals and additives. We also take in way too much sugar and fat hidden in these non-nutrient foods that lack everything but being abundant in calories.
These types of foods throw our delicate appetite regulation hormones ‘out of whack’ so we are unable to tell when we are truly hungry or not. When we have unbalanced hormones it can cause us to overeat and we can simply keep eating long after we should be full and satisfied. This makes losing weight nearly impossible.
If you are serious about losing weight you will have to accept that you will need to ditch these types of foods from your life. You will need to replace these foods with natural whole foods that you cook from scratch. Only then will you know they are free of the chemicals that have got are keeping you overweight with a slow metabolism.
Boost your slow metabolism and burn fat faster
So, just a change in your exercise habits – a proper strength training program performed 2-3 times each week with some effort put into it will rebuild and re-tone the very core of your metabolism – your muscle tissue. It has to be in tip-top health and condition so you will be burning a greater amount of calories every minute of the day and night. This is the only way to reclaim your slim body and keep it that way.
Change your eating plan to 5-6 small meals spread throughout the day, each with a source of protein as the center-piece. Make the rest of your meal vegetables and a small amount of complex carbohydrate (sweet potato, brown rice etc). This will get your metabolic motor fired up again and before you know it you will be losing that stubborn body fat that is spoiling your looks and putting your health at risk.
A healthy diet (this means avoiding processed ‘dead’ food) when combined with the proper strength training exercise program will over time turn an overweight body with a slow metabolism into a strong, lean, slim healthy body by increasing the burning of calories 24 hours a day. Perfect I hear you say.
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