You find yourself looking in the bathroom mirror and subconsciously ask yourself "Where did this extra weight come from, how did I get so fat?" Sure, you are a little less active than you used to be, which may explain how a few of the extra inches got around your waistline.
But what about the additional 20 pounds the bathroom scale is saying you weigh? You are not eating any more that usual in fact, you have been dieting much of the time.
There must be another reason that you have become larger and heavier.
Indeed there is.
If you are an average adult who does not do enough muscle building and maintaining activity (six out of ten adults don't) you will be losing 5-7 pounds of muscle tissue every decade of life.
If you are fairly physically active you may lose a little less muscle tissue.
If you diet frequently, you will undoubtedly lose significantly more which leads to a lower metabolic rate (the rate your body burns fuel).
The human body is made up of approximately 50 percent muscle tissue which is highly active with high fuel (calorie) demands so its loss means a 3-5 percent reduction in the metabolic rate.
As the years (and decades) pass by this is a reality that results in a cumulative slowdown of the metabolism for most people.
Less energy used by your muscular system mean more calories stored in your fat cells, which is the underlying cause of the gradual fat gain experienced by 75 percent of the western world's population.
So, to reverse this situation you need to re-build back your fat burning mechanism (your muscular system) and improve your 'metabolic health'.
There is only one way to do this and it means you will have to give your muscles the 'work' they need to stay strong and healthy.
When they are challenged with proper physical activity like strength training exercise they are stimulated to release 'growth and repair' hormones that rejuvenate your body at cellular level.
This is what will boost your metabolism to burn more fuel every minute of the day and night.
Your strength training program needs to be set up and monitored by a fitness professional.
It is important that you not only learn how to do the exercises correctly but with the right level of intensity (degree of effort) otherwise results will be minimal.
For the last few decades people have been mislead into thinking if they wish to burn body fat and become fitter that long slow aerobic activity (walking, jogging, cycling etc) is what they need to do.
This type of activity does not work the muscular system through its ranges of movement under a load and is considered too low intensity to stimulate a long term increase in metabolism.
This type of activity is now considered unnecessary and obsolete if a lean, strong, healthy body is what you wish to achieve.
So get yourself started now on your strength training program and you will soon feel and see the positive results all over your body.
And once you do, you will be inspired to build even more feel-good metabolic synergy into your health and fitness program so you are burning fat rather than storing it - a much better option for long term weight control.
But what about the additional 20 pounds the bathroom scale is saying you weigh? You are not eating any more that usual in fact, you have been dieting much of the time.
There must be another reason that you have become larger and heavier.
Indeed there is.
If you are an average adult who does not do enough muscle building and maintaining activity (six out of ten adults don't) you will be losing 5-7 pounds of muscle tissue every decade of life.
If you are fairly physically active you may lose a little less muscle tissue.
If you diet frequently, you will undoubtedly lose significantly more which leads to a lower metabolic rate (the rate your body burns fuel).
The human body is made up of approximately 50 percent muscle tissue which is highly active with high fuel (calorie) demands so its loss means a 3-5 percent reduction in the metabolic rate.
As the years (and decades) pass by this is a reality that results in a cumulative slowdown of the metabolism for most people.
Less energy used by your muscular system mean more calories stored in your fat cells, which is the underlying cause of the gradual fat gain experienced by 75 percent of the western world's population.
So, to reverse this situation you need to re-build back your fat burning mechanism (your muscular system) and improve your 'metabolic health'.
There is only one way to do this and it means you will have to give your muscles the 'work' they need to stay strong and healthy.
When they are challenged with proper physical activity like strength training exercise they are stimulated to release 'growth and repair' hormones that rejuvenate your body at cellular level.
This is what will boost your metabolism to burn more fuel every minute of the day and night.
Your strength training program needs to be set up and monitored by a fitness professional.
It is important that you not only learn how to do the exercises correctly but with the right level of intensity (degree of effort) otherwise results will be minimal.
For the last few decades people have been mislead into thinking if they wish to burn body fat and become fitter that long slow aerobic activity (walking, jogging, cycling etc) is what they need to do.
This type of activity does not work the muscular system through its ranges of movement under a load and is considered too low intensity to stimulate a long term increase in metabolism.
This type of activity is now considered unnecessary and obsolete if a lean, strong, healthy body is what you wish to achieve.
So get yourself started now on your strength training program and you will soon feel and see the positive results all over your body.
And once you do, you will be inspired to build even more feel-good metabolic synergy into your health and fitness program so you are burning fat rather than storing it - a much better option for long term weight control.
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