Most people do not know that metabolic age is different from chronological age. While chronological age can’t be controlled, a person can influence their metabolic age. Genetics, lifestyle, and overall health and well-being influence a person’s metabolic age.
Lowering one’s metabolic health is key to maintaining good health and reducing the risk of having health-related diseases. How can you lower your metabolic age? This post will offer a comprehensive guide on that.
If you are searching for information and guidelines on living a healthy life that will lower your metabolic age, this is the right place. Read on!
What is Metabolic Age?
Metabolic age is the measure of a person’s metabolic health and efficiency. It represents a person’s metabolic age based on their current metabolic function, which can be either older or younger than their chronological age.
When the body converts food into energy, that is when metabolism occurs. Genetics, age, gender, body mass, and lifestyle majorly affect a person’s metabolism. These factors influence metabolic age and show how well an individual’s body performs metabolic functions.
This is checked by evaluating the body’s basal metabolic rate (BMR) which refers to the number of calories needed to breathe, rest, or carry out blood circulation.
This means that the body still burns calories even when a person is resting. So to burn more calories, an individual must be fit and healthy.
When a person has a metabolic age lower than their real age, it signifies the individual is in good health and the body burns calories efficiently. However, if a person’s metabolic age is lower than their actual age. In that case, there is a need to take a step to ensure improvement in fitness.
How to Calculate Metabolic Age?
Obtain their basal metabolic rate (BMR) to calculate a person’s metabolic age. Compare the BMR to those in their age group to know their metabolic age. Trained professionals like dieticians can use factors like age, height, and weight to estimate a person’s metabolic age. Other ways to calculate metabolic age include online metabolic age calculators, body composition scales, or bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) machines.
The BIA machine measures metabolic age by emitting waves of electrical current through the body and measuring the resistance.
On the other hand, online calculators use things like age, height, gender, age, and activity level through complex calculations to obtain a person’s metabolic age. The metabolic age is then estimated using metabolic rate and BMR formulas.
How to Lower Your Metabolic Age?
Introduce More Protein to Your Diet
Protein has to be an essential component for a diet to be healthy. As people age, they naturally lose muscle mass which can cause an increase in metabolic age. Foods rich in protein will help reduce a person’s metabolic age.
Eating enough protein helps the body fight against memory. It helps preserve the body’s muscle mass which is very important for the body to have a good metabolic function.
When people consume foods rich in protein, their body burns calories faster. This means that when a person takes protein-rich food, the rate a which the body burns calories is different from that of fat-rich foods.
Adding protein-rich foods to a person’s diet is beneficial. This is because protein helps increase the number of calories burned daily and helps with weight loss by reducing body fat. Also, foods rich in protein are more thermic than carbohydrate-rich foods.
This means that the body burns more calories during digestion and metabolism of protein-rich foods, which helps improve resting metabolic rate and reduces metabolic age. Eggs, fish, milk, cows, and poultry are examples of foods that contain protein.
Exercise Regularly
Regular exercises are one very effective means of reducing metabolic age. Exercise helps increase a person’s body mass. This energy expenditure helps improve cardiovascular health and burn calories more efficiently.
These benefits help improve a person’s metabolic rate and reduce metabolic age. When a person exercises, the body uses high amounts of energy.
This high amount of used energy can lead to an increased calorie burn. Calorie burn helps in reducing body fat, increasing lean body mass and regulating blood pressure.
Regular exercise also helps improve cardiovascular health. It helps protect the body against stroke, heart-related disease, and diabetes. These diseases can negatively impact metabolic function and increase metabolic age.
Regular exercise is recommended to reduce metabolic age. This can include walking, Running, swimming, cycling, etc.
Get Adequate Sleep
Studies have shown that lack of sleep contributes to lower metabolic function. This can lead to an increase in hunger hormones and weight gain.
Also, quality sleep is vital for the body’s metabolism because inadequate sleep can lead to weight gain, reducing a person’s metabolic age.
According to research, insufficient sleep can make the body crave refined carbs and high-sugar foods. These cravings can lead to weight gain, negatively impacting metabolic function and increasing metabolic age.
To help slow down your metabolic age, aim for at least 7-8 hours of quality sleep each night. To help improve the quality and quantity of your sleep, set up a regular sleep schedule and make your environment conducive.
Try to Build a Fat-free Mass
Fat-free mass, or lean body mass, refers to all body parts without fat. This includes bones, body organs, and skin that don’t contain fat. Developing a lean muscle-filled body helps a person shed weight faster and also helps slow down metabolic aging.
Because the change in a person’s rest metabolism is inversely proportional to the fat-free body mass, muscle burns more calories. On the other hand, fat, made up of mostly inactive tissues, burns fewer calories, decreasing metabolism and increasing a person’s metabolism.
This means that fat increases a person’s metabolic age by reducing the body’s metabolic rate. In contrast, lean body mass reduces a person’s metabolic rate by increasing the body’s metabolic function.
Including strength training in a person’s exercise routine helps reduce metabolic age. It can help build muscle mass and increase the body’s metabolic rate.
Reduce Intake of Calories and Refined Carbs
Reducing the body’s intake of calories and refined carbs can help lower metabolic age. Metabolic function slows down with excessive calorie intake, which increases metabolic age. Nutritionists call them empty calories because they have little to no essential nutrients.
Also, refined carbs are easily digested by the body. This results in a rise in the body’s blood sugar and insulin levels after meals. Reducing the amount of simple or processed carbs helps reduce and maintain a good metabolic age.
Eating a balanced diet which includes whole foods such as vegetables, whole grains, vegetables, lean protein, and healthy fat can help improve the body’s metabolic rate and lower metabolic age.
Keep the Body Hydrated
Water is essential for overall health and also effective and efficient metabolism. It is essential in executing bodily functions such as temperature regulation, transportation of nutrients and oxygen, and removing waste products.
Staying hydrated can help boost metabolism by increasing the body’s energy levels. According to studies, drinking water causes a person’s resting metabolism rate to increase. This resting metabolism increases by 30% for up to 60 minutes.
Drinking water can also help regulate calorie intake by reducing appetite. The human body requires 8-10 glasses of water or more daily. Depending on a person’s activity level, climate, and overall health.
Consider Seeking Professional Help
If a person has tried to reduce their metabolic age through lifestyle changes without seeing the necessary results, considering professional help is the next step to take. Many professionals can improve the body’s metabolic function and lower metabolic age through medical processes. Certified dieticians help develop a personal nutrition plan that helps regulate metabolism and increase weight loss.
They can also help check for any imbalance or nutrient deficiencies contributing to a high metabolic function. Certified personal trainers and health coaches can develop personal exercise plans to help individuals meet their needs and goals.
They can also motivate a person to focus on achieving the required success. Doctors who treat metabolic disorders are called endocrinologists. They specialize in treating conditions like diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and thyroid dysfunction.
They can help identify medical conditions affecting metabolic age and administer the required treatment.
Conclusion
Lowering your metabolic age is a goal anyone can achieve with the right approach. People can significantly reduce their metabolic age by regular exercise, staying hydrated, getting adequate sleep, and reducing stress.
Introducing more protein-rich foods into the diet can help preserve lean body mass and increase rest metabolic function, lowering metabolic age. When lifestyle changes don’t give the desired result, seeking professional help is the best step.
By taking these steps, you will reduce your metabolic age and function and improve your overall well-being. It’s always possible to start changing your lifestyle positively and reap the benefits of a healthier, more vibrant life.
So, take the first step towards a healthier metabolism and lower metabolic age by making these routines a part of your lifestyle. Watch as your metabolic age starts to decrease over time.
References:
https://lec.org/blog/health/what-is-your-metabolic-age-and-7-ways-to-improve-it/
https://womensfitness.co.uk/health/whats-your-metabolic-age/
https://ultrahuman.com/blog/what-is-metabolic-age-and-how-to-improve-it/