Three Ways to Ruin Your Metabolism

Weight loss is all about metabolism - making your body work at its most efficient level - but there are a few common things people do that are counter-productive and just plain stupid.

1. Make cardio your only form of exercise. All cardio breaks down muscle tissue to some extent because it is easier for the body to use protein for energy than it is to break down fat stores. Without regular strength training, the body loses its metabolic base – the muscles – and weight loss slows and then stops as the ratio of muscle tissue diminishes. Add in at least two days of strength training per week to keep your metabolism strong.

2. Eat an unbalanced diet. Avoid Atkins (high-protein/fat, low-carb), Ornish (high-carb, low-fat/protein) or any other diet plan that puts an emphasis on consuming any macronutrient in excess. Build a successful weight loss plan around long-term adjustments to diet; no diet plan can last without a balance between carbohydrates, protein and healthy fat. A well-rounded diet is even more important to recovery after physical activity, to prevent illness and to process toxins out of the body. Scary things like ketosis and calcium depletion are not favorable side effects of dieting – they are pathological conditions that are not found in healthy people. Bad breath is gross, no matter how good you look.

Use a food-tracking website like sparkpeople.com to record your intake (it will give you a breakdown of your nutrient ratios in pie chart form) and to help plan meals that are balanced with a healthy ratio of carbohydrates, protein and fats. The accepted ratio for most people is about 50% carbohydrates, 30% protein and 20% fat. These ratios make it hard to eat things like donuts or porterhouse steaks, but easy to build healthy meals everyday.

3. Drink your calories. Discussions of high-fructose corn syrup aside, sugared drinks do not contain the nutrition or the satiety factor that solid food does. Liquid sugars enter the body extremely quickly, much too quickly to be used immediately (unless you are performing long-range exercise). When you start the day with an iced frappuccino or a big glass of OJ, you start your day ready to crash and burn, the body in a cycle of high and low blood sugar that leaves you alternately sluggish and jittery – and hungry. The body does not recognize this stuff as “food,” only “sugar” and processes it accordingly. Cortisol levels increase in response to this metabolic stress and causes more fat to be stored around the middle. Over time, this cyclical stress can lead to insulin resistance and Type II diabetes. Want whipped cream with that muffin top?

Instead, start the day with a mix of protein, carbs and healthy fat. Oatmeal with walnuts and raisins (add some pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon or ginger for an anti-oxidant boost) with a hard-boiled egg, or an omelet with veggies and whole-wheat toast. Don’t like or eat eggs? Substitute natural peanut butter or low-fat dairy. Have a chicken wrap. Late for work? A slice of pizza from last night will do (but eat a better lunch). On the road? McDonald’s Egg McMuffin is 300 calories and most Starbucks sell oatmeal. Pair it with the house blend coffee and you will have a better chance of eating healthy throughout the day.