Oh, Metabolism. I feel we owe you an apology. You have been our scapegoat for so many years. Our excuse. Our foe. Sure, you’ve changed over the years, but who hasn’t? And it’s not your fault- its ours. We always want you to work harder, work faster, work better, without any help from us. But how can you work hard when we don’t give you what you need to perform your best?
Well no more. Today, it is time for everyone to learn how to treat you with respect, and learn that THEY control you, you do not control them.
There are millions upon millions of books and gurus telling you how to “change” your metabolism. This implies that you were somehow given the wrong one and can swap it out for a new, faster model.
If this is the case, I got the wrong boobs and need to exchange mine for a bigger pair.
Its not about what metabolism you have, its how well you metabolism is functioning. And guess what? If it’s not functioning efficiently, it’s your fault.***
There is no better way to explain metabolism than with my infamous Furnace Analogy:
Your metabolism is like the fire in the furnace of a train. Just as a furnace burns coal for fuel to power the train, your metabolism burns energy to power your body. To get the most power from that furnace, you must consistently add fuel to the fire to keep it burning its brightest and hottest. If you don’t put fuel in the furnace, the fire will die out, and the train will stop moving. Then if you come back hours later and throw a shovel full of coal on top, it stacks up- it doesn’t burn. If you continue to shovel coal into the unlit furnace, the coal will pile up, storing for future use.
Along the same lines, if you continue to dump more and more coal onto the fire before it has a chance to burn what you have already added, the extra coal will smother that fire and again, begin to pile up. Too little or too much fuel has the same effect on the fire.
If you don’t eat for hours at a time, your metabolism slows down. Then, next time you eat, your body stores that energy for later use, when your metabolism finally (hopefully) starts up again. A slow metabolism causes your body to store food as fuel for later use, just like that train furnace has turned into a coal storage room.
To keep your metabolism running and revved to power your body like an unstoppable calorie burning freight train, you must consistently feed it a steady stream of healthy food. Small meals and snacks evenly spaced throughout the day will keep your metabolism running at its strongest: never letting the fire die down, and never signaling your body to store fuel.
You cannot “change” your metabolism, but you can definitely make it run more efficiently. Then, if you do occasionally dump a wheelbarrow full of coal into your belly, that fire is burning brightly enough to eat it right up- like it never happened.
No guilt, no blame. Now apologize to your metabolism for the emotional abuse you inflicted upon it, and give it a health snack.
***Yes, there are thyroid disorders that effect your metabolism. I, in fact, have hyperthyroidism, which means my body runs on high all the time, which in addition to a lot of other things, means my metabolism is heightened. This doesn’t mean I can eat whatever I want and not gain weight. All this means is that I have to eat a proper diet and exercise consistently (which everyone needs to do anyway) to ensure that my thyroid levels stay even. No, I was not blessed with a fast metabolism, I have a disorder that must be regulated. There are many bad side effects that are no fun at all. I actually work out to slow down my metabolism. Some people have hypothyroidism that causes their body to run slower than normal. This, as well, can be regulated with diet and exercise, and in some cases, medication or surgery. Your thyroid is not an excuse- it’s just more of a reason to eat right and exercise.
Well said. Too often our metabolism gets blamed and we rely on it as our excuse, when we could be better spending our time putting in the effort to take the responsibility onto our own shoulders.