Metabolic Restoration: Your Cheat Sheet To Optimize Your Wellness
Hi!
I’m Master Trainer Charlie, and I’m so glad you’ve found my little corner of the internet where we focus on the Busy Woman and helping her to live her healthiest life.
At F3, we want to make fitness, nutrition, and wellness easier for you. Our blog shares simple steps and free, delicious recipes designed to fit your goals and your busy schedule.
Let’s talk about your metabolism. If you’re like most busy women, you’ve probably noticed there’s always something new trending in health and fitness.
Lately, everyone in health and fitness is talking about metabolism. Even though it’s not a new topic, I think it’s worth discussing.
Did you know that what you eat and how you move affect how you look and feel? There’s debate in fitness circles about whether metabolism or calorie counting matters more than this. Today, I’ll help you sort through this with an approach that focuses on restoring your metabolism.
So, what is metabolism? Simply put, it’s how your body turns food into energy. It’s like the engine that keeps you going. When you repair your metabolism, your body works better overall, not just in burning calories.
If you want to change your body, it’s helpful to understand how your metabolism uses energy. The calories you burn each day come from a few main processes. Here are the four key parts:
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): This is the energy your body needs to keep your organs working when you are completely at rest. It’s like the calories you would burn if you stayed in bed all day.
Thermic Effect of Food (TEF): This is the energy your body uses to digest and use the food you eat. In case you didn’t know, protein requires the most energy to break down, utilizing approximately 20% of its calories.
NEAT encompasses all non-exercise activities, such as standing, walking, fidgeting, or chewing. These activities can greatly affect calorie burn.
Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR): RMR is the total energy your body needs from BMR, TEF, and NEAT. This is often referred to as your "maintenance calories" in nutrition plans.
Now that we've got the basics down, let's explore some key ways to help restore your metabolism.
Strength Training - Muscle is dense, so it takes up less space in your body. Someone who is lean and muscular might weigh 10-15 pounds more than you’d expect. That’s because while dense, muscle is heavy, and having more of it helps boost your metabolism. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn at rest. Utilizing various types of workouts, such as HIIT and progressive overload, can aid in muscle development.
Proper Nutrition - Of course, to develop and maintain muscle mass, an increase in protein intake is required. Don’t be fooled though, as adequate intake of carbohydrates and fats is also needed for the energy required not only for normal day-to-day functions, but also for the training sessions that help build and maintain muscle mass.
Proper Hydration - Staying hydrated and maintaining a balanced electrolyte level is crucial. If you’re dehydrated, you’ll feel low on energy during workouts, and over time, this can really add up. Chronic dehydration will also negatively effects your body’s normal processes like digestion and normal cellular turnover.
Rest - Adequate rest and recuperation are essential to build muscle and allow your body’s normal processes, such as waste removal from your lymphatic system, to function properly. Aim for 7.5-9 hours of sleep each night. You can read the F3 Blog on the benefits of sleep when it comes to your wellness here.
Restoring and keeping your metabolism healthy is important for reaching your health and body goals. When you combine strength training, good nutrition, hydration, and enough rest, your metabolism can work more efficiently, just as it should.
Remember, your metabolism is unique. Try these tips to find what works best for you, and share your experiences in the comments. I’d love to hear from you!
Keep WORKING.
F3. LET’S WORK.
Talk to you soon.
Your Master Trainer,
Charlie
