Are you a beginner swimmer or triathlete, who is trying to work out how to burn more calories to improve your fitness? Then this is the article for you!
First of all, do you know what we mean by metabolism? The metabolism is a combination of biochemical reactions that take place inside your cells to generate the energy your body requires.
When we talk about metabolism we are referring to two very important concepts. The first is the concept of your basal metabolism that corresponds to the number of calories your body burns at rest; in other words, your basal metabolism is the minimum amount of energy required to maintain vital functions and stay awake. The second concept is your level of activity or, in other words, the calories burned during any kind of activity.
How does your metabolism change? First of all, you need to know that it slows down by 10% every 10 years after the age of 40. Secondly, genetics play a key role, so this rate also depends on factors written in your DNA. Thirdly, gender is also extremely important. Women have a slower metabolism than men; this is due to the fact that men have more muscle mass that burns more calories.
How can you speed up your basal metabolism and hence burn more calories?
1. Work out at the gym. Increasing your muscle mass will increase the rate of your basal metabolism. Every kilogram of fat burns approximately two calories-a-day at rest, while every kilogram of muscle burns approximately six calories. This means that you will burn an extra 30 calories-a-day for every extra five kilograms of muscles.
- Begin by using light weights. This will help you speed up your movements and hence the rate at which your muscles contract, so that you can increase your strength.
- Perform 8/10 reps for each set of exercises.
2. Work out with intensity. It has been proven that performing exercises that raise your heart rate will speed up your metabolism even after your training session.
- A good training session might be 40 minutes’ running, alternating three minutes of slow running + 1 minute of fast walking.
3. Learn to eat little snacks. Frequent mini-snacks will speed up your metabolism. This happens because whenever food enters your body, your metabolism must work to digest it. But make sure you eat more frequently, not more food!
- eat food with a medium-low glycaemic index before exercise
- get used to eating balanced snacks throughout the day to avoid drops in your blood sugar level
Last but not least, do not believe in false claims! For example, caffeine does not affect your basal metabolism. The same applies to yo-yo diets. Suddenly decreasing your daily calorie intake can cause serious damage to your organism. It takes weeks to get back to a proper metabolism and it will not always have the desired effect.
Remember: the best way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you eat!
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