Is it better to have a high or low basal metabolism

The human body has metabolism every day. Some people have a faster metabolism, so the food they eat is easy to digest, fat is burned quickly, and the body appears slim and slender; some people have a low basal metabolism, so the food they eat is difficult to digest, and fat is easily accumulated. Basal metabolism is very important for the human body. So is it better to have a high basal metabolism or a low basal metabolism that is more beneficial to human health?

Basal metabolic rate

In a natural temperature environment, the minimum energy required to maintain life when the human body is in an inactive state (including the digestive system, that is, fasting for more than two hours). Your basal metabolic rate decreases with age or weight loss, but increases with muscle gain.

There are three main ways to consume calories. The first part is the basal metabolic rate, which accounts for about 65~70% of the total calorie consumption of the human body. The second part is the amount of physical activity, which accounts for about 15~30% of the total calorie consumption. The third part is the thermal effect of food, which accounts for at least about 10%.

The ratio of these three is roughly fixed, among which the basal metabolic rate determines most of the calorie consumption. Therefore, people with low metabolic rates are more likely to gain weight than those with high metabolic rates. They will be at a disadvantage when losing weight and have a much greater chance of gaining weight than others.

Is it better to have a high or low basal metabolism?

People with a high basal metabolic rate can easily achieve or maintain the low body fat body shape advocated by modern mainstream aesthetics. Although the calories needed for survival are relatively high, they can be ignored when food is cheap nowadays, and you can also enjoy the skill of eating without gaining weight. However, if natural disasters or man-made calamities or famine occur, a high basal metabolic rate can easily affect life and health due to excessive consumption.

It is more difficult for people with low basal metabolism to maintain their figure; even with exercise and a proper diet, it still requires a little more effort. But they have a stronger ability to cope with hunger and a stronger ability to survive.

Factors affecting basal metabolism

The level of basal metabolism is affected by factors such as genetics, hormone secretion (partly genetic and partly acquired), lifestyle habits and environment (such as whether or not you exercise, climate), and age.

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) refers to the minimum number of calories that a person's body needs to consume to maintain life when he or she is at rest. It is mainly used for the calories required for breathing, heartbeat, blood circulation, oxygen transport, glandular secretion, kidney filtration and excretion, maintaining body temperature, muscle tension, cell function, etc. If a person's basal metabolic rate is 1700 calories, then even if he sleeps all day and does not engage in any other activities, he will consume 1700 calories. In other words, as long as the total calorie intake per day does not exceed 1,700 calories, this person can lose weight even if he lies down.

In short, your basal metabolic rate is the number of calories you consume even if you just lie down and do nothing every day.

Calculate basal metabolic rate

The general formula for calculating basal metabolism is as follows:

Male: Basal metabolic rate = 66 + (13.7 × weight in kg) + (5 × height in cm) - (6.8 × age)

Women: Basal metabolic rate = 65 + (9.6 × weight in kg) + (1.7 × height in cm) - (4.7 × age)

How to increase your basal metabolic rate

Method 1: Enhance aerobic training

The benefit of aerobic exercise is that it brings oxygen to all parts of the body during and after exercise, effectively burning fat while increasing the body's metabolic rate. This process can last for several hours after exercise. If you don't know how to start, you can refer to the aerobic consumption table below and choose the exercise that suits you:

Method 2: Enhance strength training

The more muscle you have in your body, the more calories you burn and the faster your metabolism. However, as we age, our muscles gradually atrophy, leading to a decrease in metabolism. Therefore, if you want to maintain a good metabolic rate, you must carry out targeted strength training to increase muscle mass. For women with less muscle mass, weight training exercises such as lifting weights that can help increase muscle mass are particularly important, because increasing muscle mass can increase metabolism.

A person's basal metabolic rate decreases significantly with age, so it is particularly necessary to increase BMR through exercise.