Have an active basal metabolism, key to being in shape and not regaining lost weight

What is the basal metabolism? Why is this term talked about so much in relation to body weight? The experts at Naturadika are clear: to be in shape and not regain lost weight, it is essential to have an active basal metabolism. For this reason, they explain to us what it is and give us the five keys to learn how to speed it up.

What is the basal metabolism? Basal metabolism represents the energy that our body spends to keep us alive and is related to vital functions: breathing, pumping blood by the heart, maintaining body temperature, regulation of the sleep-wake cycle.

How to calculate it? There are formulas to calculate basal metabolism, for example, the popular Harris-Benedict equation (or colloquially called ''Harris Benedict calculator''). However, at a general level, these formulas have the limitation of not differentiating muscle mass from fat mass, and muscle is a very metabolically active tissue that consumes more energy than body fat.

Some important clarifications: weight is expressed in kilograms, height in centimeters (not meters) and age in years.

COMPONENTS OF TOTAL ENERGY EXPENDITURE

All the calories that an adult spends in a day can be categorized into 3 different components: basal metabolism, physical activity expenditure and thermogenic effect of food.

Basal metabolism: the energy our body spends to keep us alive and is related to vital functions.

-Expenditure for physical activity: the calories that are "burned" when exercising: training and any other movement that is carried out during the day (walking to go somewhere, cooking, cleaning the house, etc.). Every move counts.

-Thermogenic effect of the diet: these are the calories that the body spends to digest, assimilate and use the different foods that are eaten. Proteins are the ones that generate the highest energy expenditure, while fats and carbohydrates are more easily digested and assimilated.

FACTORS INFLUENCING BASAL METABOLISM

Going back to the basal metabolism, it is difficult (but not impossible) to modify it: of course, it is easier to do more physical activity to burn calories, or to include more protein in the diet to increase its thermogenic effect.

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Before knowing how to activate it, it is necessary to introduce the factors that affect it: age (children, adolescents and young adults have a higher basal metabolism); body composition (more muscle corresponds to a higher basal metabolism), climate (in extreme temperatures, very cold or very hot, the basal metabolism increases to regulate body temperature); and gender (men have a higher basal metabolic rate than women because, in general, they have a higher percentage of muscle in their body composition).

Other factors: the level of thyroid hormones influences the basal metabolism, increasing it (hyperthyroidism) or decreasing it (hypothyroidism). Height and the consumption of certain substances (caffeine, tobacco) also affect basal metabolism.

HOW TO AVOID DECREASED BASAL METABOLISM

Avoiding two things: a sedentary lifestyle (which leads to muscle loss) and very low calorie diets (which cause the body to go into calorie saving mode because food intake is very low).

HOW TO ACTIVATE OR INCREASE BASAL METABOLISM

-Increase muscle mass: the only way is to exercise the body and consume a sufficient amount of protein.

-Help yourself with caffeine supplements, green tea extract, ginger, guarana or cayenne pepper: these natural active ingredients help to increase the basal metabolism through the production of heat.

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