The Fire Within Keys to creating a better metabolism.
-- Andrew Eaton, Personal Trainer, CSCS, RTS2
You’ve tried them all, right? All the popular diets – giving up this, only eating that, can’t eat after a certain time of day? Read this twice - because this is important - people do not fail the diets they try; diets fail the people who try them. Fad diets are filled with misinformation and quick-fix plans. You’ve been eating since you were born, and you’re going to eat ‘til the end, so forget the quick-fix; I’m going to give you the information that will help you take control.
Essentially, metabolism is about generating energy. A calorie is a measure of heat, and the metabolism is a measure of how quickly the body expends those calories over time. Building and maintaining an effective metabolism is very much like building and maintaining a fire. The quality of any fire is dependent on fuel; the better the fuel, the hotter and longer the fire will burn. In this case, the available fuels are carbohydrates and fats.
Carbohydrates are the body’s primary source of energy for muscle and brain function, and are generally categorized into simple or complex. Examples of simple carbs include sweets and low-fiber, high-starch foods made with processed, or ‘enriched’, white flour, like white bread, most cold cereals, and white pastas. Complex carbohydrates include vegetables and whole-grain, high-fiber breads & cereals. Fruits fall somewhere in between, as they typically are high in fructose (fruit sugar) but also have some beneficial fiber.
Like carbohydrates, fats are also grouped in two general categories: saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fats are to be avoided, as they have demonstrated a link to many health risks including heart disease and high cholesterol. Saturated fats also have a higher propensity to be stored as bodyfat. The rule of thumb when distinguishing a saturated fat from an unsaturated one is that the saturated fats are solid at room temperature. Hence, foods like butter, cheese, and animal fats all qualify. Unsaturated fats include those in vegetables (e.g. avocados), olive oil, nuts, and fish; all are rich in nutrients and are more readily used by the body as fuel.
Protein is not to be forgotten, but it should be noted that protein is not truly a fuel; it is a ‘building block’ composed of amino acids. These amino acids are used by the body primarily to build, repair, and maintain muscle tissue. Primary sources of protein are meat, poultry, fish, and eggs. While not readily useable as a fuel, they do play an important role in the metabolic process, which will be explained shortly.
Each time you consume food, the body must expend calories to digest it. The more complex the food, the more energy is required. Your body will burn about 5 calories for each 100 grams of fat you consume. You will expend approximately 10 calories for every 100 grams of carbohydrate you eat. Proteins are chains of amino acids, which require up to 20-30 calories per 100 grams to process. Here is the important part: fat contains 9 calories per gram, while carbs and proteins only contain 4 calories per gram. 100 grams of fat, therefore, has 900 calories, while 100 grams of carbs or protein only have 400 calories! Let’s say you’re eating 2400 calories a day. That’s 400 calories per meal. You could eat 266 grams of fat, or 600 grams of carbs and/or protein. Which would you rather be able to eat each day?
Key number 1: eating complex carbohydrates and lean proteins with each meal provides up to a 30% boost in your metabolism, and they have less than half the calories of fatty foods! The next time you have a choice between fast food and supportive nutrition, keep in mind that it will take twice as long to burn off twice as many calories.
Back to the analogy; when building a fire for heat and warmth, we usually opt for large logs, which will provide a long, slow burn. In the nutritional sense, complex carbohydrates and lean proteins are the logs. They’re filling, take a while for the body to digest, and are, therefore, good sources of energy. As high-fiber foods are the logs, sweets and sugary foods are a piece of newspaper. It provides great heat, or energy, for a very short duration, but then flames out to almost nothing. (How many times have you had a sweet snack in the middle of the afternoon, felt great for 20 minutes, and then felt exhausted? You know what happens next – you reach for another snack!) Reading into the analogy, when you eat high-fiber foods, it takes far less food (and, therefore, calories) to get the metabolism cooking. If simple sugars are a staple of your diet, it takes repeated servings to keep energy levels up…requiring more and more calories.
Key number 2! Snacking on complex carbohydrates – a.k.a. high-fiber foods - is an easy way to eat fewer calories and feel full without depriving yourself of food.
An unattended fire tends to go out. In order to keep the fire burning, it must be stoked at regular intervals. The body’s digestive cycle runs about 4 hours, so it is important to get more fuel in the system before the fire goes out. It is recommended that meals be consumed approximately every three hours to keep the metabolism running at its optimum level. The added benefit of such a schedule is that, like resistance training conditions the muscles, frequent feedings condition the metabolism to burn food efficiently.
Key number 3: eating smaller, more frequent meals provides metabolic boosts throughout the day, and conditions the metabolism to burn calories efficiently.
A word about choosing your foods: stoke the fire based upon the three hours following the meal. If you’re just starting your day, it is important to build a hot fire which will provide energy through the morning. Another way to say that is – you need to eat breakfast! Did you know that people who do not eat breakfast are 400% more likely to have issues with obesity? Complex carbohydrates provide a long-lasting, slow burning source of energy, and are ideal for breakfast, along with a serving of lean protein. In addition, feeding your body quality protein early in the day lets the body burn fat up to 7 times more efficiently! If you’re eating dinner, and you’re going to bed soon, it is not necessary to build a roaring fire. Protein and vegetables provide a nice combination of metabolic boost and few residual starchy calories.
Key number 4: eat breakfast, and plan meals to fuel you through the next three hours.
**A word about nutritional supplements. According to Annette Dickinson, president of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, “The regular use of multivitamins and a few other nutritional supplements can measurably improve the nutritional status and lifelong health of the American public.”
Key number 5: certain nutritional supplements can help you optimize your energy, physical performance, and overall health. To learn more about which nutritional supplements may help you look, feel, and perform better, ask your pharmacist or personal trainer, or visit my website at www.advocarenutrition.net.
In summary, you are not a slave to your metabolic rate; you have the ability to improve your metabolism. Your body can burn more calories, more efficiently, while providing enough energy to get you through anything you undertake. Better yet, by taking care of your metabolism, you will maximize both your potential and your results in the gym and in life, making your commitment and hard work worthwhile.
You have enough information to take control of your metabolism…stoke that fire and get burning!
Remember: People do not fail the diets they try. Diets fail the people who try them.
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