Boosting Your Metabolism - Part 23 - Common Metabolism-Boosting Myths

Myth No. 3: Low Intensity Workouts

It’s fair to say that any exercise is better than no exercise. So if you lead a sedentary lifestyle, then even walking around your block for 10 minutes a day is going to do something positive for your body and its metabolism.

True, that difference may be imperceptible to the naked eye (or it may not?), but the bottom line is that exercise is good. This being said, some people believe that they should perform low-intensity workouts even when they could be performing more high-intensity workouts. For example, instead of jogging for 20 minutes with their heart at the top end of their aerobic zone, they opt for low-intensity jogs that barely break a sweat.

Low intensity workouts simply don’t lead to a faster metabolism; they can’t. Remember, as we discussed very early in this blog, metabolism is a process. And that process is really one of two types: taking energy and making cells (anabolism), or breaking cells down to make energy (catabolism).

If you don’t achieve a high-intensity workout, then your body can’t achieve catabolism; it won’t need to. So the only way your body is going to go and break down existing cells is if it needs to.

So keep this in mind as you exercise, either at home or at a gym. Low intensity workouts are better than nothing at all; and they may be necessary if you’re recovering from injury, or just starting out on the exercise journey.

But once you reach a level of basic fitness, only high intensity (aerobic) workouts will make a difference in terms of your metabolism. High intensity workouts force your body to find energy to help you maintain that level of exercise; and it does so through catabolism.

Next time we’ll cover Myth No. 4, and why too much focus can put up a barrier between yourself and the body you always wanted.


See you then

Best wishes

Sandra