Despite the old adage
that metabolism is associated with weight, it’s only a myth. There
is not much validity to the ‘belief’ that slender individuals
have a high metabolism and overweight people have slow ones.
While certain people may suffer from a thyroid condition which
in turn affects the metabolism, weight alone does not determine
one’s metabolism. In
actuality, weight loss or gain relies on the amounts of caloric
intake and how much energy is expended. When the body has more
incoming calories and has less calories being burned, weight
gain is inevitable. It makes the most weight sense that reduced
caloric consumption triggers weight loss. Metabolism is the
motor that uses the body’s fuel or energy.
In terms of medical science’s
definition of metabolism, it is the process by which the body
extracts energy from food. When the biochemical process transpires,
the calories originated from fats, carbohydrates and proteins
— are combined with oxygen to discharge the energy the body
requires to operate and function.
The amount of calories that
the body utilizes to burn calories is referred to as the total
energy expenditure. Three fundamental factors are comprised
of the total energy expenditure:
• General requirements. Even
when the body is sedentary it requires energy for fueling the
organs, blood circulation, breathing, regulating hormone levels,
the growth and rejuvenation of cells.
•
Physical exertion. Exercise coupled with physical activity and
other movements account for the utilization and expenditure
of calories.
•
Food processing. Digestion, absorption and the process of transporting
food as well as how it is stored necessitates energy or calorie.
These processes account for approximately 10 percent of the
calories expended daily. By and large, the body's energy requirements
needed to process food remains relatively stable and does not
change.
Calories
expended to cover these basic functions are your basal metabolic
rate. Typically, a person's basal metabolic rate is the largest
portion of energy use, representing two-thirds to three-quarters
of the calories used each day. Energy needs for these basic
functions stay fairly consistent and aren't easily changed.
|
