 By Elena VoropayYou probably have heard it many times - you are what you eat, how you move and how much you rest. You are your metabolism. In scientific terms, metabolism is ultimately a collection of all chemical reactions that take place in the body's cells. These reactions include converting the fuel from the foods you eat into the energy needed to power everything you do, be it moving, sleeping, thinking or simply growing. In fact, thousands of metabolic reactions happen at the same time to keep your cells healthy and working. Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is one of the three main contributors of your overall metabolism. BMR is the amount of calories or kilojoules you burn at rest. The BMR refers to the amount of energy your body needs to maintain itself. This accounts for 50-80 per cent of your total energy use. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), or Basal Energy Expenditure (BEE), can be defined as the “measurement of oxygen consumed and carbon dioxide produced” while you are at rest. This means no physical movement at all. How can you be burning energy while you are not moving? Simply because your body needs to live, to maintain the function of all internal organs. The BMR may vary between 1,200 and 2,400 kcal/day. You can increase your resting metabolic rate by adding lean tissue (or building muscle) and by engaging in physical activities. If Individual engaged in normal daily activity ranges from 1,800 to 3,000 kcal. The energy expenditure for very large athlete who trains intensely can exceed 10,000 kcal/day! While many factors contribute to how many calories you burn without, gender is one of the largest often overlooked parts of the the metabolic puzzle.
If you are like most women, you have probably noticed that you gain weight a lot easier than your partner, brother, father, or any man you know. This shouldn't be a surprise – women tend to have slower metabolisms and burn less calories than men.
There are a few things involved in your metabolism. In a nutshell, if you take in less calories than you burn during the day, week, month or year, you will lose weight. If 'energy in' is made up of the total amount of calories you eat, 'energy out' translates into three factors.
Contrary to popular belief, most of the calories you burn during the day is not when you exercise, but when you rest. Your heart, lungs, digestive system, and, most importantly, the brain, work 24/7 and require constant energy supply. As a result, about 70 percent of your metabolic demands come from “resting energy expenditure” (REE). If you are moderately active, you burn additional 20 percent of calories during “activity energy expenditure” (AEE). Where are the rest 10 percent? Believe it or not, you melt these through simple food digestion and metabolism or “diet induced thermogenesis” (DIT).
Any manipulation of these changes the proportions. If you want to change your body, you will have to change your lifestyle – improve your diet and exercise, reduce stress and hopefully sleep better. All together, this will change your metabolism.
Why Women Are Fatter Than Men
There are several differences between men and women which contribute to women's slower metabolism. On average, women's total energy expenditure, which is the number of calories burned for metabolic needs, including breathing, blood circulation, digestion and physical activity, is around 5%-10% lower than men's.
Body composition, that is the amount of muscle, bone and fat that make up the male and female body, are quite different. Women have more body fat than men, and not without reason. By nature, a woman's body is developed to protect her and a potential fetus. Men, in general, have more muscle mass, heavier bones, and less body fat than women. For example, a typical man who weighs 70kg has 31kg of muscle, 10kg of bone and 10kg of fat. A typical women who weighs 57kg has only 20kg of muscle, 7kg of bone, and 15kg of fat. These are all healthy ranges, so the reason why women generally expand and need less energy is rightfully justified. The recommended percentage of body fat for a woman is between 20%-30% which is thought to be higher for childbearing, while the recommended range for a man is between 12%-20%.
With aging, everybody experiences loss of muscle tissue. Men, however, drop less through disuse. If each pound of muscle burns 35 to 50 calories, that woman will then burn 350 to 500 calories less each day. And if she doesn't adjust her eating to reflect that change, she'll gain weight.
Hormones, also contribute to the equation. Women have a biological disadvantage when it comes to weight loss, as they naturally produce lower levels of key fat-burning hormones for purposes of child bearing. Their bodies are abundant in chemical messengers responsible for fat deposition, such as estrogen, insulin, and growth hormone and have more enzymes for storing fat and fewer enzymes for burning fat.
The very famous fat-burning hormones testosterone, thyroxin, adrenalin and nor-adrenaline are higher in men. Furthermore, women have higher levels of the testosterone-trapping protein sex-hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), which increases with training. Additionally, the estrogen women have activates fat storing enzymes and causes them to multiply, so women are not able to build the muscles men can and burn calories as fast.
The tender gender is five to eight times more likely to have thyroid dysfunction and insulin resistance than their stronger counterparts, particularly following childbirth. And most women don't even know they have these abnormalities and often overlook their symptoms or mistake them for symptoms of other conditions.
If you are a woman, don't get too discouraged and start feeling sorry for yourself as you have some advantage over men – women enjoy monthly surges in progesterone during the luteal phase before menstruation. Apparently, progesterone is thermogenic. Progesterone elevates body temperature and burns a significant number of calories at this tie of the month. This explains why women may be able to get away with eating an extra 300 calories per day before menstruation.
And this is not all. Yes, women have more fat and less lean tissues, but this is actually a great advantage for them. Remember the highly active caloric burner hormone leptin produced in fat cells? Well, girls, you have more of it. Leptin acts on some brain circuits that increase energy expenditure without you having to run a marathon. You can just sit there, relax in front of the tube and watch your favorite sitcom and burn, baby, burn. You can even touch the blubber on your tummy without dropping a tear – this fat helps you burn more calories than your same-shaped partner. Ok, just don't forget to go for a nice walk after the show is over – you still want to give your metabolism a boost.
Even though women generally have slower metabolic rates and tend to lose fat at a slower rate than men, don't let this upset you. With consistent cardiovascular and resistance training coupled with a nutritious diet you can manage to achieve and maintain a healthy body fat percentage. As your body fat levels drop, you will notice that the fat loss comes off in reverse of how it was put on. So, the most recent fat gains will come off first, while the old fat that has been there for a while will take the longest to lose.
Keys To Success
The best way to get lean and maintain as much muscle as you can is to diet slowly. Ideally, you should aim to lose no more than ½ kg per week. Any more than that and you are sacrificing muscle.
A successful fat loss program should include:
1. A calorie-restrictive but well-balanced diet with foods from all major food groups
2. Regular cardiovascular activity for at least 30-45 minutes 3-4 times per week.
3. Regular resistance or weight training program at least once or twice a week that includes exercises for all large muscle groups (legs, back, chest).
It all sounds plain and simple, but the key here is consistency. Stay loyal to your program. Take responsibility to commit to your healthy lifestyle - the payoff is well worth the trouble. And remember, it's never too late. If you have tried it before, but failed to continue, look back and see what was the reason. Were you pushing yourself too hard? Did you get discouraged because you didn't see expected results? Maybe you need some patience and persistency in achieving your goals. And what's the rush? You've got a whole life in front of you, so live it, and enjoy every single moment of it.
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