Many of us are confused when we hear about how important a healthy metabolism is to our well being.  What exactly is this metabolism and how do you know you’re treating it right?

I find it best described as you would your own personal bank account.  You can make deposits and you can make withdraws.  If you make enough deposits, over time, your metabolism will mature appropriately and you will reap the rewards of a healthy and aesthetically pleasing physique.  Make too many withdrawals and you could find yourself in metabolic debt.

Making Deposits

Your bank account takes time to grow.  It’s all about the small deposits you make on a regular basis.

  • Getting enough sleep
  • Increased physical activity
  • Eating balanced meals

These are all small deposits we should be making daily.

Making Withdrawals

The biggest mistake I see people making is that their withdrawals become bigger than their deposits.  Naturally this leads to debt.  You may think you’re doing well by eating healthy here and there but at the end of the week if the deposits haven’t outweighed the withdrawals you’ll find yourself in trouble.  Often this is what leads to frustration and eventual failure when trying to live the healthy lifestyle.

  • Not getting enough sleep
  • Irregular and bad eating habits
  • Sedentary and lazy habits

These may seem obvious but they are a few of the things that can add up in the end.  I should also mention here a few of the big withdraws people tend to make not knowing it’s doing harm to their metabolism.

  • Crash diets
  • Juice diets
  • Certain detox or cleansing programs
  • Miracle pills

There may be times we feel these types of strategies will help give us a boost when trying to lose weight.  But in the end you cannot game the system.  These are large withdrawals.  Your body may reflect a positive change but your metabolic bank account will be put into critical debt.  This is what leads to a loss of lean body mass and an eventual regain of all the weight making it even harder to lose the weight the next time around.  A viscous cycle usually follows; the making of more withdraws followed by more metabolic debt.  Eventually leading to metabolic damage; the point of no return.

All and all it’s really quite simple.  But at the same time very hard to stay on the path of the righteous.  We find ourselves constantly tempted by the dark side.  Hopefully I’ve shed some light on your ability to look at it from a new angle.  Keep the deposits coming in at a steady pace.  And avoid writing any checks you cannot afford.