A healthy metabolism Precisely what is metabolism? On the subject of slimming and dieting, a word that you hear much reference to is “metabolism”, but what on earth is metabolism and how might it have an effect on your weight management goals and objectives? The phrase metabolism has Greek roots and it means “change” or “transformation”. Regarding the body, metabolism is actually the speed at which your system goes through energy or calories to perform very important functions. During each second of every day, the body is constantly burning calories - whether you are sleeping, sitting or exercising. Your body and its organs must have ongoing “fuel” to power itself, which is why a balanced diet, with a range of nutrients, is so very important. Your metabolism is the regulator and manager of this fuel. So how does metabolism affect weight reduction? Most likely you have heard people talk of a “fast” or “slow” metabolism” in the context of slimming. They are referring to a person’s resting metabolism or basal metabolic rate (BMR). In a nut-shell, this is the overall measure of energy spent for normal maintenance, repair and operation of your system. For a lot of people, their body’s ability to digest (burn) food / calories and use it for energy is a swift process (a fast metabolism) and for other folks it takes more time (a slow metabolism). Our metabolism tends to slow down as we get older. In addition, metabolic rates can vary a great deal from one person to another, even as between those individuals that have the same height and weight. Thus, determining your distinct metabolic rate is very important when it comes to creating an acceptable weight management plan. For example, lots of individuals skip meals to help them to lose weight quickly. The truth is, this is not just an unhealthy technique, but it may actually cause you to gain pounds and lose muscle tissue. There isn't a secret to losing weight - it's all about balance, variety and moderation: Balance • Balancing the volume of calories you consume with the volume of calories your body makes use of or "burns off." • Eating a balanced diet and ensuring your system gets the “fuel” it needs to efficiently and effectively carry out its many bodily functions. Variety Variety, as they say, is the spice of life. Making certain that you have variety in both what you eat and exercise regime will not only make certain you are getting a broad assortment of nutrients and staying healthy and fit, but it will also make it easier for you to sustain your weight management programme for the long-term (through change in lifestyle), since you are less likely to become bored and return to old habits. Moderation As with variety, moderation is key to a successful weight management programme. Giving yourself the rare “treat” and having a modest amount of everything is likely to make your health ambitions more realistic and achievable. Can you really increase your metabolism? In brief, the answer is “yes”, there are ways to boost your metabolism: Exercise and strength training Exercising and weight training are two of the best ways to do this. Individuals who have more muscle tissue than fat are more likely to have a higher metabolism than people who are heavy. This is because muscle burns up calories faster than fat - one more reason to choose an all-round approach to weight management, which emphasises the need for both a balanced diet and a good exercise regime. Health supplements Whilst they should not be relied upon in isolation, many individuals find that nutritional supplements give them the additional support that they need to get started on the way to a healthier weight, or help them to maintain that weight. For example, there are herbal fat metabolisers / herbal fat burner formulas to help you optimise the results you accomplish through your diet, slimming and training. THERMOthin weight management formula contains a blend of active nutrients to support weight loss results and a healthy metabolism - in particular, it contains capsicum extract, a well-documented metabolism stimulant. There are also supplements, which contain well-known weight management and body-shape support ingredients. FATSorber, for example, contains a special combination of chitosan, garcinia cambogia, Congugated Linoleic Acid (CLA), vitamin C and chromium picolinate. Chitosan is known as a “fat magnet” because chitin, a polysaccharide found in the exoskeletons of crustaceans, binds to fats in food. * Before changing your diet or taking health supplements, it is recommended to consult your doctor or qualified health practitioner (particularly if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or on medications).   © Specialist Supplements Ltd 2011 This is an information site only!  0845 094 3627 Weight Loss and Appetite Weight Loss and Appetite [Home] [Health Information Pages] [Balanced Diet] [Weight Management] [Metabolism] [Sitemap] [HTML Sitemap] [Weight Loss Links] [Resources Links] [Appetite Control] [Body-Fat] [Diet] [Health Information] [Herbs for Weightloss] [Slimming1] [Slimming Tablet] [Slow Metabolism] [Weightloss Diet] [Weightloss Tablet]