Fallacy: "Most People who are overweight have slow metabolisms."
Fact: Overweight people actually have faster metabolisms than average!
"A lot of people like to blame their metabolism for their weight gain. But it's interesting: Once you know a person's fat-free mass, there's hardlly any variance from person to person." David C. Nieman, PhD, FACSM, director of the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University (Boone, North Carolina) explains. "In other words, humans are very simpilar when it comes to the energy it takes to keep a kil or a pound of fat-free mass alive.".
The Human Performance Lab at Appalachian State has tested hundreds of people and, according to Niemen, the correlation between fat-free mass and resting metabolic rate is so high that "it is a myth that people, especially larger people, can blame their obesity on a slow metabolism." In fact, it may be just the opposite.
"As you get bigger and bigger, your metabolism increases; it actually works in favor of those people trying to lose weight. Because they're burning more calories, they keep eating and eating too much, and that's why they gain the weight. The metabolism isn't the issue, it's their eating habits," says Niemen.
When is comes to gaining weight, you actually gain some fat-free mass. For every 20 pounds that the average person gains in weight– that's without training–one-fourth is fat-free mass and three-fourths is fat. That one-fourth of fat-free mass is supporting tissue to help the body carry the extra weight. "People who have a lot of bodyfat and are still (mobile) have a fair amount of lean mass because they have to; it's almost like a self-imposed weightlifting regimen," Keith points out. "Because if they're up moving around, climbing stairs, they haul a lot of body-weight around so they actually do compensate for that with some hypertrophy." Therefore, if you're overweight and active, you're getting some increases in metabolic rate–just not as much as your less-fat counterparts.
Do people who struggle with their weight usually suffer from a thyroid disorder?Go toMetabolism 101, part 3
for the answer.
Metabolism 101, part 1
Metabolism 101, part 3
Metabolism 101, part 4