How can increased muscle mass improve your metabolism?

You may have heard that one of the benefits of muscle mass is improved metabolism. But what does this really mean?

To put it simply, the more muscle you have, the more calories your body will burn at rest. This also means that you are able to eat more without gaining weight. If your aim is to lose weight, gaining more lean muscle will help to speed up your metabolism and make dieting easier (because your body will demand more energy).

Let’s delve a little deeper into the nitty gritty…

INCREASING YOUR MUSCLE MASS INCREASES THE CALORIES YOU BURN

Our cells require energy to work, this energy mostly comes from food. Our body at rest means that we still need to breathe, blink and keep organs functioning, but the energy from these actions do not come from outside sources, and this is what refer to when we talk about our bodies at a resting metabolic rate.

The amount of calories you burn at rest is significantly higher when you have more muscle cells working, rather than when you have less muscle. Adding just 10 pounds of muscle will increase your resting metabolic rate by a mile.

Fun fact- for each additional pound of lean muscle mass, your body will burn an extra 50 calories a day!

BMR (Basal metabolic rate) is the amount of energy you expend while your body is at rest. BMR accounts for about 60% of our body’s energy expenditure. 1 pound of muscle uses 6 calories a day, compared to 1 pound of fat which will use 4. So this means that more muscle mass will increase your energy expenditure, which helps for losing weight, or staying a healthy weight!

To summarise, the more amount of muscle you have, the better your body will be at converting your food into fuel to power all of your body’s cells and keep your body functioning!

MORE MUSCLE HELPS WITH HUNGER PANGS

It’s not a great feeling when you are on a diet and exercising on the regular and you feel hungry constantly. This happens because being active increases your metabolism, so you are burning more calories at rest.

Your body may think that because you are using a lot of energy, that it will have to hang on to the calories. But if you start to eat more and eat more regularly, you won’t have to constantly feel hungry and you will be loosing weight because your muscles will be burning the calories.

Muscle cells require a higher amount of energy to function than fat cells do, which means having more muscle mass on your body, you’ll need more calories. The more muscles you have, the less likely your body would go into starvation mode than it would if you were carrying extra fat.

ABILITY TO CARRY OUT DAILY ACTIVITIES INCREASES

If you have less fat in your body, the easier it is for it to move around! Muscle helps our connective tissue remain healthy, so it is able to protect us from injuries. Many sports related injuries will be caused by a lack of muscle around joints. Strength training will help to add muscle to decrease these risks and aid everyday movements.

IMPROVES YOUR LIFE EXPECTANCY

If you have lean muscle mass and decreased fat mass, it is proven by studies that you will have an improved quality of life, and even increase your life expectancy.

Growing older, our muscles will naturally lose mass, and this decreases our total energy expenditure. This is why resistance training is so important due to all the benefits it has on bone and joint health. It is very important that that as you age, you continue resistance training to avoid the risk of obesity.

Being more sedentary increases risks of developing health problems such as heart disease, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, and musculoskeletal disorders. If you have a good level of muscle mass, you are less likely to develop these diseases and are able to prolong your life!

IMPROVED MENTAL HEALTH

If our bodies have more muscle, we are able to regulate our emotions and stress levels easier as there is less cortisol in the bloodstream. This helps to reduce symptoms of depression, and people who don’t exercise enough have a bigger risk of developing depression.

IMPROVED SLEEP QUALITY

Strength training improves the quality of your sleeps and decreases insomnia significantly. This is because of the body’s natural growth hormone release, which during sleep aids muscle repair and recovery. If you increase your lean muscle mass, you can induce a deeper and more restorative level of sleep and increase your overall performance throughout the day!

IMPROVED NERVE FUNCTION

A healthy amount of muscle mass can improve nerve function as it increases blood flow to the extremities. The more sedentary you are, the more your blood flow will diminish around your body. This means that nerve function can become limited and also your metabolism will decline.

INCREASED METABOLISM

Strength training with added muscle mass means that you can have higher ‘hormone-sensitive lipase’ levels in the bloodstream. In effect, it means that our body is able to break down fat cells faster, and lead to fat burning. Strength training increases our metabolic rate throughout the day.

More lean muscle mass can also lead to lower levels of harmful cholesterol, which is what leads to heart disease. Developing a higher amount of muscle mass will decrease the risk of developing heart disease and cardiovascular disease alongside developing cancer. The reason is because through adding muscle mass, you can decrease your body’s ‘bad cholesterols’ such as low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which is the cause of plaque build up in veins and arteries. This is why strength training with added muscle mass can decrease bad cholesterol levels and in effect, improve heart health!

INCREASED GROWTH HORMONE

Growth hormone repairs bones and skin and can maintain body fat levels. If you can increase your lean muscle mass, signals are sent to your pituitary gland that your body needs more growth hormone to keep and maintain the new muscle tissue. `more growth hormone is released into the bloodstream which promotes healing and tissue repair through the body, which is necessary in maintaining good health and metabolism!

NUTRITION

These points do not mean that you will not gain weight no matter how many calories you eat daily. Aiming for a calorie deficit, focus on nutrient-dense foods and portion control. This means eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly to reap the long-term benefits of a healthy lifestyle, aiding weight management.

At Patch Fitness, we are always here to help with nutrition advice, and finding a programme that works for our members.