In my last few posts I have been revisiting the topic of boosting your metabolism.  I began by explaining exactly what metabolism is and then moved on to explain how eating affects your metabolism.  Today I am going to discuss how exercise affects your metabolism.

As I mentioned in previous articles metabolism is influenced by three main factors:
- Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) (the number of calories you burn performing the basic functions that keep you alive).
- Your level of Physical Activity.
- The Thermic Effect of Foods that you Eat (the number of calories it takes to digest and absorb the foods you eat).

Exercise can have an impact on two of these factors; your BMR and (fairly obviously) your level of Physical Activity.  There are two main types of exercise that can affect your metabolism; Cardiovascular Exercise and Resistance Training and I will be discussing both of them below.

HOW DOES CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE BOOST YOUR METABOLISM?

Cardiovascular exercise (also known as aerobic exercise) is anything that involves or improves your body’s oxygen consumption.  Examples include cycling, jogging, sprinting, skipping, rowing and walking.  These types of exercise boost your metabolism quite simply because they require additional calories to perform.  Even something as simple as walking for 30 minutes a day will boost your metabolism slightly as this requires more calories than sitting still and not moving.

Cardiovascular exercises also slightly increase your metabolism for a few hours after exercising.  According to this article you can burn up to 15% more calories than normal in the 48 hours following a cardiovascular workout.  So if you normally burn 2000 calories per day and you do a cardiovascular workout three times per week which burns 500 calories a session then you could potentially burn an extra 3600 calories per week (1500 calories from the three cardiovascular workouts and an additional 300 calories per day from the 15% post workout increase).

HOW DOES RESISTANCE TRAINING BOOST YOUR METABOLISM?

Resistance training (also known as strength training or weight lifting) is anything that involves using resistance to build strength and muscle mass.  Examples include bodyweight training, using weight machines and lifting free weights.  Resistance training also burns additional calories during the workout but the main way it boosts your metabolism is by increasing your muscle mass.  Muscle requires more calories to maintain than fat.  The difference is not huge but according to About.com a pound of muscle requires 6 calories per day to maintain whilst a pound of fat requires 2 calories per day to maintain.  Therefore, by performing regular resistance training and building muscle mass you can increase your BMR and the overall amount of calories you burn on a day to day basis.

WHICH EXERCISES SHOULD I PERFORM TO MAXIMISE MY METABOLISM?

Both types of exercise are useful for boosting your metabolism.  Regular cardiovascular exercise increases the amount of calories you burn through physical activity whilst regular resistance training will increase your lean muscle mass and therefore increase the number of calories you burn whilst resting.  In combination the two types of exercise can give your metabolism quite a boost.

I hope this article has fully outlined how exercise influences your metabolism.  A good exercise routine can boost your metabolism and burn quite a few calories.  However, you need to remember that exercise alone cannot compensate for a poor diet.  If you are eating too much then you will not be able to remedy this with exercise (unless you exercise A LOT).  Exercise can boost your metabolism but you need to get your diet right too.

Do you guys agree?  Do you think diet is more important than exercise when it comes to controlling your weight?  Are there any other ways that exercise can boost your metabolism?  Let me now your thoughts by leaving a comment.

Sources:
How Many Calories Does Muscle Really Burn (About.com)
The Post Workout Calorie Burn (BNET)

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As I have already discussed in previous articles there are a number of ways to increase your metabolic rate, with exercise arguably being the most effective. In this article I discuss a few more reasons why you should consider exercising as part of your metabolism boosting routine.

1) EXERCISE BURNS CALORIES:- Sounds simple but the more exercise you do the greater the number of calories you will burn. By exercising regularly you can force your metabolism to operate more efficiently.

2) MUSCLE BURNS CALORIES:- Muscle requires more calories to maintain than fat. Therefore, increasing your body’s muscle mass will increase the amount of calories your body burns. However, you need to be aware that the effects of this have been exaggerated greatly in the past. Having an increased muscle mass will burn additional calories but not to a significant degree.

3) IMPROVED OVERALL HEALTH:- Exercise has many positive impacts on your body. A mixture of cardiovascular exercise and weight training can really help your body function better. Cardiovascular exercise improves your circulation, strengthens your lungs and gets your heart working. Weight training helps you build strength and power.

4) IT’S FUN:- Some people may not agree with me here. However, if you really think about it there is likely to be some exercise out there which you find fun. There are so many options when you exercise which include playing ball, gardening, running and more. Surely, there is one which you enjoy.

As you can see exercising has many positive effects on your metabolism, your body and your mind. It really is one of the keys to improving your metabolic rate. With all these additional benefits there really is no excuse for neglecting exercise any longer.

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It is widely agreed that it is not possible to alter the metabolism you were born with. If you have a slow metabolism you cannot suddenly flick a switch and have your metabolism accelerate. Whilst this might not sound like good news to you there are a number of things you can do to compensate if you have a slower than average metabolism. In this article I will discuss how regular exercise can help boost your metabolism.

The act of exercising itself will burn additional calories. For example, if you go for a rigorous 30 minute run this will burn more calories than sitting watching TV for 30 minutes. However, exercise is also significant in boosting your body’s overall natural ability to burn fat. In the majority of cases, the best way to achieve this is through a combination of aerobic exercise and weight training.

The reason exercise is so effective in boosting your metabolism is it attacks the calories in two ways. First, regular aerobic exercise gets your body used to burning fat that is already present in the body. Secondly, weight training increases your body’s muscle mass. Muscles require calories to be maintained and so the more muscle you have, the more fat you can burn. However, you need to be aware that the calorie burning properties of increased muscle mass have been heavily exaggerated in the past. Increasing your muscle mass will increase the amount of calories that your body burns each day but the effects are not groundbreaking. You will need to combine your weight training with aerobic exercise to achieve optimal results.

So what are some good exercises to achieve the desired effects? For aerobic exercises anything that gets the heart pumping is useful. This can range from gentle walks to more rigorous physical activities such as running or football. The key to success with aerobic exercise is finding something that you enjoy and sticking with it.

With weight training you need to be a little more cautious. If you just go into the gym and start throwing the weights about you can quite easily cause yourself an injury. You need to start slowly and exercise with weights that you are comfortable with and then gradually increase them to build muscle mass. If you are unsure of where to start then seek the advice of a fitness trainer at the gym. They will be happy to help and should be able to create a weight training plan that is suitable for you.

As I have already explained it is impossible to change your metabolic rate completely. However, by incorporating aerobic exercise and weight training into your lifestyle you can increase the amount of calories you burn on a day to day basis.

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