FITNESS: MAXIMIZE YOUR METABOLISM

Are your exercising but not reaching your chosen goals? Have you spent money on a health club membership, maybe the guidance of a trainer, expended many dollars and ounces of perspiration and found yourself frustrated at not seeing the changes you’d hoped? It’s time to take a real look at the largest piece of the puzzle which often happens to be the most ignored - adherence to a sound nutritional program. In my business, I choose not to use the term “diet” because in the U.S., the term has been so misused, the mere mention invites thoughts of deprivation or restriction. Instead, I invite clients to think of eating as a scheduled program, a lifestyle commitment that is integral to maintaining health, and an absolute NECESSITY to achieving fitness goals, be it losing unsightly body fat, increasing strength, increasing performance in a chosen endeavor, or simply enhancing vitality in everyday living. I constantly reaffirm to new clients that if attention is not given to the area of eating habits, their results will be drastically shortchanged.

In America the word “diet” intimates a schedule one undertakes for a given length of time, that it is something with a beginning and an end. A nutritional program is a lifestyle integration. Eating properly is the largest common denominator in maintenance of health and fitness. It is taking care of the machine that carries us in our everyday activities. Poor eating habits have a domino effect of physical and psychological consequences that would require more pages than this publication prints to expound upon. For our purposes a program of eating will be introduced that will increase energy levels, stimulate your metabolism, combat fatigue and bolster your immune system. Adopted correctly, you’ll be eating more and be getting fitter, not fatter.

First, the physiology of metabolism needs to be addressed. Physiologically our metabolism should be fed no differently than when we first arrived in the world. At birth an infant feeds in small portions frequently throughout it’s waking hours. This is how our metabolism is programmed and synchronized to function. The act of eating STIMULATES your metabolism. Not eating or missing meals slows your metabolism and interrupts the synchronization. Now, if the act of eating heightens metabolic activity, the types of food, and frequency of meals needs to be addressed.

It seems that America has waged a homeland war on carbohydrate and its consumption. Everywhere we look there are “lo-carb” foods being touted as the new weight loss nirvana. Here is the raw fact, carbs do not make you fat. Your choice of carbs and your portion sizes do.

When Americans hear the term “carb” it is often thought to mean breads, pasta, muffins and the like. Regardless of whether these foods are titled “whole grain” or not, the fact remains they are PROCESSED. By processed it means they are created, that they are not in their natural state of origin.

Eating foods that are processed or “predigested” results in these foods turning to sugar very rapidly in your system and consequently storing as fat. Carbohydrates in their whole form such as sweet potatoes, rice, oats, barley, and rye digest slowly, not spiking your insulin levels and hence ( unless copious quantities are ingested ) will not store as body fat.

The Function of Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates stores as glycogen in your liver. Glycogen stores are your muscles primary energy source. If your glycogen stores are not in alignment with your energy expenditure, your body turns to utilizing muscle proteins for energy. This is called catabolism. Simply put, your body is eating muscle tissue for energy. For obvious reasons this is not a sound state to be in. In my experience however, well over half of the “regular exercisers” population, are in this state unbeknownst to themselves.

The function of Protein: It’s not just for bodybuilders

Protein comprises 90% of your blood, 80% of your muscles and 70% of the skin. Protein is essential for growth, the building of tissue, and the repair and rebuilding of injured or broken down tissue. The regular ingestion of protein throughout the day heightens your metabolism as your body must release a larger quantity of enzymes to digest protein versus other food stuffs.

Protein is the construction “worker bee” of your body. If enough is present it is constantly rebuilding and strengthening the infrastructure, fortifying it against stress and preventing it from weakening. Protein deficiencies hinder tissue development and repair. Adult athletes and those who exercise regularly can expect such conditions as lethargy reduced energy, weakness, slowed mental process, slowed healing of injuries, prolonged recovery from exercise, and a compromised immune system, if their protein requirements are not being met.

Protein needs to be eaten at every meal. As stated before, protein jumpstarts your metabolism into action. Protein also slows the digestion of carbs into sugar. Secondly it hinders the overeating of carbohydrate. Carbohydrate alone is not a meal. Eaten by itself it digests into sugar too quickly. Likewise, your body will send signals to eat larger quantities of it to get the trace amount of protein it contains.

It is vital to know that ADDITIONAL protein is needed in proportion to your muscles demand for it. The more intensely your exercise the more protein required for repair, recovery and tissue growth. Not only do strength athletes need extra protein intake, University studies now reveal that endurance athletes and frequent exercisers do as well. Here is a table for determining your protein need factors.

.5 – Sedentary, no sports or training

.6 – Jogger or light fitness training

.7 – Sports participation or moderate training 3x week,/P>

.8 – Moderate daily weight training daily

.9 – Heavy weight training daily

1.0 – Heavy weight training daily plus sports training, or “2-a-day” training

Need Factor ( tabled are your protein requirements expressed in grams per day )

* From International Sports Sciences Association Journal

BREAKFAST – The catalyst meal.

Many of us can remember as young schoolchildren the emphasis as breakfast being the most important meal of the day. This does not change once we become adults. The word breakfast originates from “breaking” a fast.. Upon rising in the morning you haven’t eaten for eight or more hours. Your metabolism has slowed both from duration of time between your last meal and the fact that you’ve been at rest. Skipping breakfast elongates your deprivation period and your metabolism slows in accordance. Remember to keep your metabolism elevated it must be fed. A furnace that is not routinely stoked peters out.

So we have learned that protein along with proper choices of carbohydrate should be eaten with each meal.

How often should we eat to keep the furnace ( our metabolism ) stoked? Every three hours. Sound like a lot? Not if you consider that each meal portion-wise is considerably smaller than our society considers to be a “meal”.

A simple guideline is that a serving of each foodstuff ( protein, carbs, and vegetables ) is what could fit in the palm of your hand. Meals of this size are certainly not copious and can be eaten in as little as 5-10 minutes time.

For those who find adopting this schedule too daunting at first can simply substitute a whey protein mixed with water as the meal between breakfast and lunch and lunch and dinner. There are great tasting whey protein powders available that are easily digestible and take less than 5 minutes to mix and drink.

If all this sounds too strict, hold on. In part 2 you’ll be told why in every 7th day in this program a “reward” day is integrated. It is a whole day devoted to your favorite foods. Does this sound too good to be true? It is absolutely true and you’ll be told why it actually is beneficial So, keep this article. Next week you will be told how to structure an eating program , in alignment with the information presented here, to maximize your metabolism and see your goals achieved.

© New Image Fitness NY,

Chris and Anke Cosich are certified fitness trainers and nutritional consultants. They own NEW IMAGE FITNESS INC. serving clients in the Hamptons and New York City. For appointments/consultations: 631-267 5744. www.newimagefitnessny.com