Basic metabolism and energy expenditure are the key points to understand in order to control your diet and weight. After all, who has never tried to lose weight without understanding the basic principles of nutrition and without really knowing what to change in their diet?
What is basal metabolism?
Basal metabolic rate, or basal metabolism, is also called resting energy expenditure.
In fact, all the processes that occur in your body when you are at rest, breathing, cell renewal, maintaining body temperature or even your heartbeat, result in the expenditure of calories.
Calories consumed at rest can be distributed as follows:
- Brain function consumes about 20%.
- A heart that beats 24 hours a day consumes about 15 to 20%.
- The liver, also functioning at rest, contributes 15-20%.
- Kidneys, lungs and other tissues consume about 10-15%.
- Muscle accounts for 20-25% of total basal metabolism at rest
We’ve all seen it on the internet: “sit in front of the TV for 2 hours and burn 100 calories”. You’ll be delighted to know that this fact is not entirely wrong!
But do you really think that sitting on the couch will make up for the pizza you ate at lunch? Absolutely not!
How does metabolism work?
To put it simply: anything in your body that isn't fat or bone uses energy when you're at rest. The functioning of your organs, the movement of your brain, but especially your muscles, create two processes in your cells:
- Anabolism: This process consumes energy. To achieve this result, our body carries out several reactions that result in the formation of new molecules (to allow the regeneration of muscle tissue, for example).
- Catabolism: on the contrary, this will produce energy. This time, we find the reverse process. This energy is obtained by destroying different molecules in your body.
These last two processes are essential for the proper functioning of your body. They occur within the lean mass (anything that is not fat) of your body.
In other words, your fat doesn't burn calories! That's why, as we'll see later, the more you increase your muscle mass at the expense of your fat mass, the more energy you burn at rest.
The main factors affecting metabolism
To calculate your basal metabolic rate, which is how many calories you need to stay alive, there are four factors to consider:
- Gender
- Weight
- Size
- Age
In short, a person in their thirties with significant muscle mass will necessarily burn more calories at rest than a person in their sixties who is 5'5" tall. In fact, our calorie expenditure will be greater if we have more cells to feed.
Please note, however, that the results obtained may vary. In fact, a person weighing 70 kg, with a lot of muscle and little fat, will not obtain the same results as a person who has a lot of fat.
The reality will be very different, as those who have more muscle mass will spend more at rest than those who have more fat mass.
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