Metabolism is the result of all the processes in your body working together to create the energy that keeps you going. When it slows down, your energy levels will reduce and fat storage will increase. There are several factors that influence one’s metabolism. Age, diet, activity, habits, environment are a few of those. There are some things that we do on daily basis that slows down metabolism that we may or may not be aware of.
Inactivity– Heard of ‘Sitting Is the new smoking’? We sit at work, traveling to work, while we watch tv, and when we eat. Even if we workout for an hour a day, sitting for more than 6 hours a day will slow down metabolism and predispose us to heart disease, diabetes, BP and even cancer.
Fix it : Walk around for 5 minutes every half an hour, and stretch your muscles every one hour. Watch this to get more tips on how to move often.
Sleep – Our sleep quality determines our workout and food choice the following day. Simply put, when we don’t sleep well, we won’t be energetic enough to work out the next day as our body doesn’t recover enough. Being tired and low on energy the whole day, will not only slow down our metabolism and productivity, but will make us reach out for wrong/junk food by evening.
Fix it : Following your circadian rhythm/body clock, will help you burn fat better. The adage ‘ Early to bed and early to rise ’ says it all. Sleep better with these tips.
Not eating when hungry – Ever got caught in meetings that go on forever while our tummy is grumbling? Left with no other choice, we reach for that coffee, tea, soda or nothing. When we are hungry and do not eat food, the body goes into starvation mode and starts storing everything as fat rather than burning it, as it is unsure when the next meal is. Consuming stimulants when you are hungry, just worsens this situation.
Fix it : Eat , not drink when hungry. Keep some nuts or fruits handy to save yourself in such situations. Learn how to eat mindfully here.
Do you eat, move and sleep well? Let us know in comments.
If you found this post informative, share it with your friends too.
