Metabolism
What is it and what role does it play?
By Arthur Ostrom
Certified Personal Trainer &
Nutrition Counselor At Jersey Shore Fitness Shop in Bradley Beach N.J.
Metabolism is the process of converting fuel from foods into energy for the body to function. We all like to eat, but when we eat is the key to maintaining a proper metabolic rate. Food first and foremost is fuel for the body. This provides energy for the body to function properly.
Your body is like a coal furnace, it needs coal to start the fire burning (your metabolism). If you shovel coal into it at 7am and do not replenish it till 12pm and not again till 7pm, the fire will have gone out or at the very least diminished. Instead if you feed the furnace (your body) at 7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm and 7pm this will keep the body’s metabolism burning throughout the day. Eating small meals or snacks spaced about 3 hours apart will keep your metabolism elevated. When your body does not take in sufficient calories, it senses starvation and protective metabolic mechanisms take over, slowing your metabolism down and burning fewer calories- even at rest.
I hear clients and friends say all the time” I don’t have time to eat breakfast”. That is the single biggest mistake you can make. Your body needs energy (food) as soon as possible upon waking up in the morning. You have not had food for at least 10 hours and your energy levels are depleted. You need to break the fast, you need to eat BREAKFAST. The first meal of the day is the most important. It will give the energy you need to start the day. You should consume food within the first 30 minutes of getting out of bed. Try to have the most nutritious food as possible. It will help prevent grabbing a less nutritious food to fill the hunger later in the day.
Eat the majority of your calories earlier in the day. This will help keep your energy levels elevated and burn the calories so that they are not stored as fat. Most of us tend to eat more later in the day, try the opposite. Like the old saying “Eat breakfast like King, eat lunch like a Prince and dinner as a Pauper”.
Eating healthy is the best way to support a good fitness program. So remember do not get discouraged if you do not see results right away. Try changing what and when you eat and you will see results.
711 Brinley Avenue Bradley Beach, NJ 07720 | www.JerseyShoreFit.com | Phone : 732-988-9888