metabolism myths

The Truth has set you free!

redmaryclare wrote: »

It is amazing the stuff we tell ourselves to justify not acting and denying how much we really eat.

amen

WakkoW wrote: »

chrisbyradio wrote: »

Metabolism actually does change with age, it's calculated into your calorie expenditure when you sign up which is why you're losing weight, someone at the age of 25 has a very different caloric need than a 60 year old. There are a lot of myths to boosting metabolism (using supplementation/diets/etc) but when it comes to age, genetics, and body composition, a lot of that is true. Just changes the caloric calculations being used.

Metabolism can decrease due to loss of muscle mass. If you use your muscles, your metabolism will not change dramatically.

I'm 44 and probably eat more than I did when I was 25. I'm also more active, can run faster, and lift heavier than I did in my early 20's.

I was able to drink more alcohol without getting a hangover the next day in my 20's.

For sure, due to body composition changes (more lean mass). If you were just as active as you are now when you were 25 and had the exact same body composition you would have different caloric needs though. You can slow it down but it's how the body works. When calculating caloric needs you take age into consideration. Same as how your max heart rate goes down with aging. Genetics goes a long way in determining body composition of an active individual so that's also a factor. I'm just saying those specific things aren't myths. Watching calories in/out works is true. Calculating that calories out number comes with a couple different caveats though.

chrisbyradio wrote: »

just an example would be a 45 y/o female who weighs 125 is 5'7 and very active would have an estimate of 2583 caloric expenditure a day. A 25 y/o female who weighs 125, is 5'7 and very active would have an estimate of 2729 caloric expenditure a day. At 55, 2510. At 65, 2436. So age is definitely a factor in metabolism.

I don't think the "myth" being addressed by the OP is that metabolism changes as you get older (and not by much, according to the figures you gave).

It's the myth we tell ourselves: that we get heavy and "can't" lose because our metabolism is defective somehow. That obesity is caused by being dealt a genetic short straw, or some undiagnosed medical condition. That's the metabolism myth. Anything else (normal changes in metabolism, actual medical conditions that affect weight) is a different topic entirely.