Put simply, your resting metabolic rate is the minimum number of calories your body needs to survive if you sleep in bed all day. Your body needs energy for hundreds of bodily functions such as breathing, keeping the brain functioning and any movement your body makes. Just being alive uses up around 70% of the calories you burn every day.
According to research, the following calorific expenditure is used by the body:
Homeostasis - 70%
Digestion & Elimination - 5-15%
At this point, our body has already burned around 85% of daily calories without taking any exercise or activity into account. Running on a treadmill at a fairly steady pace for 20 minutes can burn between 150-300 calories depending on your body weight ? thus the amount of calories we burn in activity is far fewer than the body burns keeping itself functioning.
So if you consider what happens when we reduce the amount of calories you ingest but keep your activity levels the same, your body has to become more efficient at functioning with less energy and will consequently slow down your metabolic rate in order to function more efficiently.
In addition, as your body is receiving from fewer calories from your diet it will look for elsewhere for other sources of energy...your muscles. If you're wondering why it won't turn to fat just yet, this is because the body will use fat as a last resort - its long term energy store in cases of starvation ? it will only be used when all other energy reserves have been used up.
So not only will you starve your body of the adequate nutrients it needs to function, you will also be forcing it to eat into muscles for energy and you will lose lean body mass. There is also research that shows that if you do start to eat 'normally' again, most of the weight gain will be fat and that muscle mass will not be replaced by re-feeding.
So what does this mean for those of us trying to lose weight?
It means that:
1) Cutting calories alone will simply slow down your metabolic rate
2) Cutting calories will probably result in muscle loss, which will not be re-gained if you start to eat 'normally'
3) Aerobic exercise is unlikely to burn sufficient calories for effective weight loss and may also result in loss of muscle
4) An important key to losing weight is retaining your lean body mass - your muscle, which means resistance exercise should be included in your programme
So if you want a short, one sentence that says it all - here it is...a combination of diet, a small amount of aerobic training (at the right intensity) and a moderate amount of resistance training should result in the most weight loss without a loss of lean body mass.
Lea Woodward is a qualified personal trainer and director of activOne ltd in the UK. She provides personal training, diet & nutrition advice and massage therapy to clients in the Midlands and virtual training to clients worldwide. Check out the website http://www.activone.co.uk
executive chauffeured services Bradford .. Madison to Airport carWeight Watchers inspired me to change my eating habits, lose... Read More
Information About Weight Training Routines For BeginnersSo you need to... Read More
You have probably heard the old myth, that you should... Read More
Several months ago I was in desperate need of weight... Read More
Losing weight is a lifelong commitment. It takes patience and... Read More
You see it all the time; people agonizing over their... Read More
If you have been trying to lose weight permanently, then... Read More
Diet and Exercise. They are the inseparable twins that are... Read More
What is the link between Hispanics and obesity? Are people... Read More
To understand how surgical procedures aid the grossly overweight person... Read More
Don't get discouraged. I, too, have found myself in this... Read More
Have you ever received those tempting ads that seem to... Read More
Plan to eat two to three hours and pack health... Read More
Nice girls don't speak up. Nice girls take care of... Read More
The Atkins Diet Seems To Never Go AwayFad diets come... Read More
Although liposuction is one of the most commonly performed cosmetic... Read More
I was shocked. I started to cry...After the holidays, I... Read More
What is a calorie? The definition of a calorie is... Read More
Abdominoplasty, or "tummy tuck" is a major surgical procedure that... Read More
Make sure that no more than a quarter of your... Read More
Sometimes it's good to just let the feelings flow. Take... Read More
Now that everything from a tan to pantyhose comes in... Read More
Why have I allowed myself to get into this shape?... Read More
Why is it so hard to lose weight and keep... Read More
Digestion is a chemical process. Our body combines different types... Read More
O'Hare Chicago prom limo ..Losing weight on hips and thighs has always been a... Read More
Are you unhappy with your current weight but aren't "motivated"... Read More
Healthy living begins with healthy eating and healthy eating begins... Read More
There's recently been a LOT in the weight loss news... Read More
Sometime, during the phase of rapid weight loss after gastric... Read More
More than 70% of US adults are overweight and that... Read More
Exercising too hardThis is probably the most common mistake. As... Read More
My name is Greg Ryan. I am a best selling... Read More
Hot dang! If a few hundred other folks can peddle... Read More
Its crowded..really crowded..every other site offers Weight Loss Programs and... Read More
Have You Given Up on Weight Loss? by Greg Landry,... Read More
Trash Your TV! is pleased to announce the easiest weight... Read More
It is estimated that about 32 million Americans are following... Read More
If you want any weight loss program to work you... Read More
We all know that losing weight and improving your overall... Read More
The Zone Diet as a weight loss program has been... Read More
I don't know anything about you but if you're anything... Read More
Today obesity, diabetes, and heart disease run through us at... Read More
In order to lose weight, your body must burn more... Read More
Did you know that being successful with losing weight starts... Read More
You step on the scale and groan at the number... Read More
Many people want to lose a few of those annoying... Read More
If only there were a 'better body boot camp', we'd... Read More
Weight loss from exercise can be achieved by walking, running,... Read More
We all know that weight loss is important. We know... Read More
Weight Loss |