In this video, the host discusses the best way to fix your metabolism by understanding how the body works. The body is guided by an intelligence that drives everything and tries to maintain a set point of weight where it feels safe. If we reduce food intake beyond the time between meals, the body perceives it as a threat and reduces expenditure. On the other hand, intermittent fasting can be beneficial as long as we eat to satiety during the feeding window. Factors that lower the basal metabolic rate include dieting, aging, insulin resistance, seed oils, fructose, alcohol, pesticides, and dysbiosis. To restore metabolism, one should reduce calories safely, restore insulin function, improve gut health, manage stress, and take care of the thyroid. Building muscle can also slightly increase the metabolic rate.
Key Insights:
- The body is guided by an intelligence that drives and regulates everything.
- Food is about survival, and there are times of abundance and scarcity.
- The body has a set point, a range of weight where it feels comfortable and safe.
- If the body drops below the set point, it will do whatever it can to get back to it.
- If we overeat, the body will spend more energy to return to the set point.
- The basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the amount of energy the body uses at rest.
- BMR can be influenced by factors such as diet, aging, insulin resistance, thyroid function, stress, and gut health.
- Long-term calorie restriction and extreme exercise can lead to metabolic damage.
- Fastinng, if done correctly, can be a safe way to reduce calories without triggering a threat response.
- Insulin resistance, caused by excessive glucose consumption, can lead to weight gain and metabolic dysfunction.
- Other factors like aging, stress, dysbiosis, and exposure to chemicals can also affect metabolism.
- Restoring metabolism involves reducing insulin resistance, controlling stress, improving gut health, and optimizing thyroid function.
- Exercise, especially strength training, can help increase muscle mass and slightly boost metabolism.
Transcript
Hello Health Champions today I’m going to talk about the number one absolute best way to fix your metabolism and that is to start understanding that your body is guided by an intelligence. There’s an intelligence residing in your body that is driving everything, taking care of business. Our best hope for fixing things like metabolism, which is pretty complex, is to start thinking like the body.
The first thing to understand is that food is about survival. Every living thing on the planet is trying to ingest some resources to help that species survive. There will be times when there is more food and times when there is less. Our bodies have the ability to adapt. When there is more food, we can store resources to create a buffer for times when there is less. The body is guided by a principle called a set point, which is a certain range of weight where the body feels comfortable and safe.
If we start dropping below that set point, the body will do whatever it can to get back there. Conversely, if we overeat, the body will spend more energy to get back to that set point. When we have less food over a longer period of time, we tend to lose weight and our body is threatened. It feels unsafe and starts changing something to secure survival. This doesn’t just mean losing weight but also expending more energy, such as through exercise.
The basal metabolic rate (BMR) is how much energy your body uses at rest before doing anything else. This is also known as RMR (resting metabolic rate). While the average formula for estimating BMR is to multiply your weight in pounds by 10 (or by 22 if measured in kilos), it is important to note that there are huge variations in this rate.
Reducing intake more than the time between two normal meals can cause the body to reduce its expenditure. The body will cut back on its metabolic rate, but this reduction only becomes a problem when it is sustained for a long time and starts shutting down permanently. If you eat and the weight comes right back up, it is not a problem. However, if the body goes without food for too long, it can result in permanent damage.
Intermittent fasting, where you purposefully wait a little bit longer between meals and compress your meals into a shorter time period, is considered safe as long as you eat to satiety. The body needs to feel satisfied and replenish the resources, otherwise it perceives a threat. Starvation occurs when there is a sustained lack or reduced amount of resources, leading the body to feel threatened. Consistently being below the basal metabolic rate can be problematic.
Feast and famine is a very normal phenomenon for all species. It is normal to experience variations in food supply. If we miss one or two days without eating, but then get to eat again, the body feels safe as long as the resources are replenished completely. Processed foods can cause overeating due to their drug-like effects, stimulating pleasure receptors and bypassing normal regulation. However, whole foods do not cause overeating if eaten in a state of satiety.
While dieting may initially lead to weight loss, it can eventually backfire. The body compensates and adapts by reducing energy expenditure and increasing hunger to regain a set point weight. This is known as yo-yo dieting, where weight is regained, often more than before. Long-term plans and addressing underlying factors are necessary to break this cycle.
Factors that can lower the basal metabolic rate include dieting, aging, insulin resistance, thyroid issues, and stress. Insulin resistance is particularly important, as it can affect weight and metabolism. Poor lifestyle choices, such as excessive consumption of sugar and alcohol, consumption of seed oils, exposure to pesticides and chemicals, and dysbiosis (an imbalance of gut bacteria) can contribute to insulin resistance and metabolic issues.
To restore metabolism, it is crucial to reduce insulin resistance, restore normal insulin function, address the role of the hypothalamus in perception of the set point, improve gut health, manage stress responses, and support thyroid function if necessary. Building muscle through exercise can slightly increase metabolic rate, while low carb, high-fat diets can help reduce hunger and improve insulin sensitivity.
In conclusion, restoring metabolism involves understanding the body’s intelligence, addressing factors that contribute to insulin resistance, and making positive lifestyle choices that support overall health.
