You might think that if you could just increase your metabolism, your extra weight would just fall right off. While this is true, many of the ways to increase your metabolism also cause weight loss. Exercise and eating right are the two main ways to increase your metabolic rate.
Identification
Metabolism is the rate at which your body processes and uses nutrients. It can be quantified by finding your resting metabolic rate. Resting metabolic rate is dependent upon your age, body temperature, body composition, gender, stress level and hormones. Most important is your body composition as resting metabolic rate is directly related to your amount of fat-free mass.
Lean Body Mass
Body composition is divided into two categories -- lean body mass and fat mass. Lean body mass is the part of your body that is made of skeletal muscle, smooth muscle and bone. Lean body mass, especially smooth muscle takes more energy to maintain homeostasis. Therefore, the more lean body mass that you have, the higher your metabolism will be. Ways to increase lean body mass include aerobic and resistance exercise.
Exercise
When you exercise, your energy needs increase. With physical activity, your metabolism increases directly. Your metabolic response to exercise is only limited by your maximal exercise capacity. Exercise has a lasting effect on the body's metabolism. Brooks, Fahey and Baldwin, in their book "Exercise Physiology" refer to a term called excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC. This refers to the amount of oxygen that your body demands to make up for to post-exercise metabolic deficit. This means that even after exercise, your metabolic rate is increased. EPOC is dependent on the duration and intensity of exercise.
Exercise and Hormones
Exercise raises hormones that increase metabolism of fat. During moderate intensities of exercise, growth hormone and norepinephrine are increased. During higher intensities of work, epinephrine and cortisol are raised. These four hormones all work to activate lipase, the enzyme that is responsible for mobilization of fat for use.
Diet
There are ways that diet can influence metabolism. First, by eating a low-fat, calorie controlled diet, you can control your weight. With a combination of a healthy diet and exercise, your lean body mass is increased, thus increasing your metabolism. Secondly, there are several necessary vitamins that aid your body's metabolic processes. The B vitamins play a major role in energy metabolism. Zinc helps the body to metabolize carbohydrates, proteins and fats.
References
- "Physiology of Sport and Exercise;" Wilmore, Jack H., Costill, David L.; 2004
- "Exercise Physiology;" Brooks, George A., Fahey, Thomas D., Baldwin, Kenneth M.; 2005
- "Nutrition: Concepts and Controversies;" Sizer, Francis, Whitney, Eleanor; 2004
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