Lots of advice here on metabolic flexibility and how to improve it.
Hello Hello! How is your day? I hope you are having a great day so far. I have quite a few things on my to-do list for the day — all the good stuff, of course!
For today’s post, I wanted to talk a little bit about something I’ve started paying more attention to over the past couple of years: metabolic flexibility. As I learn more biohacking tips and strategies to improve my health, I’m excited to share more of that information here. This post was written in collaboration with A, our Fitnessista RD. If you have any questions about it or topics you’d like us to cover, let me know!
Now, let’s get into it!
How Do You Know If You Are Metabolically Flexible?
What is metabolic flexibility?
Metabolic flexibility is the body’s ability to switch between fuel sources, whether it is energy obtained from fat or energy from carbohydrate consumption. Do you notice that you feel better when you eat a steak versus a pizza?
Why metabolic flexibility is important
Being metabolically flexible allows the body to easily switch between glucose and fatty acid catabolism. Catabolism is basically the process of breaking down the food you just ate and using it for fuel, or if it’s been hours or even a day since your last meal, it lets your body dip into fat stores for fuel. A flexible metabolism allows this to happen with ease while feeling great and is an indicator of mitochondrial function.
How do you know if you have a flexible metabolism?
Here are some indicators that your metabolism is working at an optimal level:
– You can stay hours without eating and without being hungry.
– The frequency of your meals does not dictate your mood.
– Your energy levels are great when you eat a diet rich in protein and healthy fats.
– You feel great when you eat a diet rich in proteins and carbohydrates.
– You don’t need to eat every 2-3 hours to prevent fatigue, headaches or hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
– You have not invented yourself as someone who follows a certain “diet”.
How I measure my own metabolic flexibility:
I use two things to see how my metabolism works and how my body responds to different foods and eating patterns. The first is the Lumen, which will actually tell you if you’re burning mostly carbs or fat, based on your RER (respiratory exchange ratio). I am using Lighting unit a few times during the day and modify my diet based on her suggestions. (If you decide to give it a try, use FITNESSISTA for an additional $35 off!)
It was also insightful to see how certain workouts and foods (especially late night meals) affect my metabolic function.
You can see my full post on Lumen here.
I will also occasionally use Nutrisense, which is an app combined with a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) and the support of a registered dietitian. It gives insight into your blood glucose after meals and throughout the day. Numerous health concerns can lead to insulin resistanceso it’s a great tool to help you make decisions about improving your insulin sensitivity.
It was incredible to see my body’s response in real time. Nutrisense also helped me make very simple modifications to my diet and eating patterns. I credit it with motivating me to have my last meal earlier in the day, skip alcohol late at night, go for a walk before or after a high carb meal, and also eat my protein first.
My full post on Nutrisense is here.
How to achieve metabolic flexibility
One of the easiest things you can do to improve metabolic health and achieve a flexible metabolism is to balance your sugar and be strategic about your fuel choices. The goal is to have moderate increases in our blood sugar levels throughout the day while minimizing high spikes and crashes.
How to do this:
– Eat your protein before your carbs in the meal. This can feel like eating your eggs and bacon before diving into the fruit end. eat half your steak before taking a bite of broccoli or baked potato.
– Balance your meals with the right proportions of proteins, carbohydrates and fats according to your goals. Make half of your plate non-starchy, green vegetables, then add 6 ounces of cooked protein. Fill the rest with carbs or fat as you prefer, remember to eat the protein first.
– Plan your carbs. Front-loading your carbs earlier in the day (breakfast/lunch) is important for increasing metabolic flexibility. It’s also better for overall metabolic health and preventing insulin resistance.
What does this look like?
You can eat grilled chicken legs with vegetables at lunchtime, finish with a “treat” that you usually save for the end of the day, and then go for a walk. Or you can follow up your lunch lifting session with shrimp stir fry with rice. Eating protein and fiber first will moderate the blood sugar spike from the simple carbs in the treat and rice.
In addition, the food Post-lift carbs allow your muscles to use those carbs for repair and growth. Walking after meals is beneficial because exercise promotes fat burning and helps move glucose through the bloodstream. The idea is to put the energy you’ve just consumed to work, rather than sitting around and letting it get stored in the body, potentially leading to weight gain.
– Finally, make sure you finish your last meal at least 2-3 hours before hitting the hay! Not only will you sleep better, but your body will be able to get to work clearing your brain and regenerating new cells instead of focusing on digestion. I know, it’s hard not to eat late, especially when your schedule is packed with activities with kids or a late work meeting. It’s not bad to start late! Start by focusing on front-loading your total food intake for the day so that if you do eat late, it’s a smaller meal of protein and vegetables. This is much easier when your body has received most of its nutrition earlier in the day.
Although it is not for everyone, Intermittent fasting can also increase metabolic flexibility. Intermittent fasting encourages your body to burn fat for fuel. A shorter eating window suppresses insulin and, over time, improves your body’s sensitivity to insulin. The less insulin you have, the more fat you burn.
Many metabolically rigid people will find that intermittent fasting is key to improving metabolic health, but I encourage you to talk to your healthcare provider beforehand to make sure it’s right for you.
Sleep is also important because it ensures that the body is primed to take advantage of and use human growth hormone (HGH). Human growth hormone is essential for your body to heal, repair and build. HGH is mostly released during deep sleep, so you can think of the “sweet spot” as being between 10pm-2am. To make sure you hit that sweet spot and enjoy the free benefits, start your bedtime early.
Let me know if this post helped you! Please let me know if there are any future topics you would like to see like this. 🙂
ho ho
Gina
