The Metabolic Training Myth?

 

 

                                                                                     The bang for your buck workout

 

                                                                                        METABOLIC CONDITIONING

                                                                                            METABOLIC TRAINING

                                                                                             METABOLIC FITNESS

                                                                                            METABOLIC CLASSES

 

 

 

 

Lets get one thing clear. Its all complete rubbish. Well it isnt but it is all complete marketing over the last 5 years. For those of us who have been in the business of sport or Personal Training for more than 5 years, what are advertised at metabolic sessions or metabolic training is what was considered getting / being fit.

 

WHAT IS METABOLISM?

This is the amount of energy your body requires to function. Even at rest and asleep your body requires energy to carry out basic functions, breathing, pumping blood, removing waste products as well as all cellular activity. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the amount of energy your body requires in a day (24hours)

 

Many things effect your Metabolism or your BMR (which is your metabolism over a 24hour period). These phrases can be interchanged at will.

 

Significant Factors

• The amount & intensity of activity you do (standing, walking, playing, moving, dancing, working

• The amount & intensity of exercise you do 

• How large you are (including muscle, the more muscle you have the more energy your body requires)

 

 

Extremely small or not significant factors

• Hormones (stress, excitation - not feeling but physical adaptations to your hormones. For example being afraid of height produces physical symptons such as vasoconstriction and sweating, this all requires energy) 

• What you eat - Some foods require more chewing or digestion than others requiring more energy

 

The above two points are not mysterious. They are physical processes that can be measured externally or cellular processes. 

 

 

ENVIRONMENT

Temperature (clothing, wind, humidity) all make a difference to how much energy your body requires in order to be in homeostasis (keeping the internal envirnmonet the same, in this case thermoregulation). With air conditioning and heating these factors are very low, and are thought to be a small but contributing factors to world wide weight gain. 

 

 

WHAT IS METABOLIC TRAINING

 

A workout that raises your metabolism both during and after the workout. Technically ALL workouts do this. As does all activity. So it is really a relative concept, one that has been pounced on by the marketing gurus withion the industry,

 

Metabolic workouts are those which burn a larger amount of kcals in the workout and also after the workout. 

 

DURING THE SESSION

This is all down to intensity (over a set period of time) . The harder you work the more kcals you burn. 

 

working hard does not mean pain, it is the over all amount of work you can do in a given amount of time. One way to do this is to use big exercises  (compound movements) in a circuit fashion, allowing one muscle group to rest while another works. 

 

 

AFTER THE SESSION   -  "After Burner Effect"

 

HOMEOSTASIS - More specifically THERMOREGULATION 

 

Ever got out of the shower and realised you are still sweating. That is your body still trying to cool itself down, even after your session has ended. This happens after all sessions to some degree or another. But it also epends ont he environment. When we talk about the "after burn" that would be irrelivent of all other factors that would make you hot. We are talking about the internal heat caused by chemical reactions and friction within your muscles(& vascular system) that make your body hot. The harder you work the more reactions and the more mechanical friction  

 

MUSCLE

 

The other way a workout determins the "after burner" effect is by increasing the amount of muscle you have. While walking, swimming and slow jogging will increase the amount of msucle in a beginner, the most effective way to gain muscle is to perform strength exercises. High intensity over a short period of time. 

 

Weight lifting with heavy weights and low reps is best for this. However you wont

1) increase your temperature significantly

2) burn as many calories during the session

3) Increase fitness levels over time 

 

This third point is important because as you get fitter (heart, lungs and muscles) you are able to do more work (in a given amount of time) and thus burn more kcals during each session

 

 

The most effective way to burn calories during a session and get the after burn affect is to perform large movements using as few rests as possible.

 

 

Cardio intervals are a great way to do this. running, skipping, boxing, rowing, x training, cycling can all burn through huge amount of calories when working at a high intensity, utilising rest to aid recovery before more bouts of work

 

Another way to do this however is to use large body movements in a circuit or super set fashion so each group of muscles get to rest, but your body as a whole doesnt. 

 

 

WHICH METABOLIC WORKOUT IS BEST?

 

In the short term the results would be close, the cardio based intervals winning out for calorie burn during session. However in the long term the crcuit style workout is best, as it allows you to gain more muscle than the cardio workout. So increasing your metabolism more over the long term.

 

 

HOWEVER

There are so many howevers. If you are already muscular or do strength training workouts in addition, then neither workout will help you gain muscle and thus the effects that a beggginner or intermediate would see is now void.

 

 

ALL CLASSES ARE METABOLIC CLASSES

 

Maybe not all, but nearly all classes utilise intervals as well as a vareity of workout intensities. From spin to aerobics and legs bums and tums to body pump. Some have complete rests, while others use smaller exercises to give you a breather. 

 

Metabolic classes tend to be hard (as its all about intensity), however if you work as hard in a diffferent class (you can wear a heart monitor to emasure this) then it is as metabolic as a "metabolic class"

 

Circuits, bootcamps have traditionally always been the "metabolic classes". they are not necersarily harder than other classes, however you are likely to have larger harder strangth exercises and more intense intervals. also more rest to go with it.

 

 

 

MANY OTHER FACTORS

 

How much weight you lose, how fit you get will depend on many other factors

 

Do you enjoy it

Is it easy to get too

is it appropriate for you (injuries)

does your best friend go

 

 

 

All the above factors will make a dif to how often you go and consistency is the key.  

 

 

 

 

SHOULD I GO TO A METABOLIC CLASS?

 

No, well yes. But not specifically. Go and try it out. But go and try every class out. you may love some and hate others. If you like a class, then keep going. 

 

 

The best advice i can give is find a workout or class you enjoy. Then each month ensure you are working harder than last month, ie you are progressing. Squat deeper, jumping jack wider, side plank longer or wear a heart monitor and check your average heart rate and maximum heart rate for your workout.

 

Keep improving, if you do this then it is only a matter of time until you reach your goal.