5 Habits That Slow Down Your Body's Metabolism

Illustration of causes of slow metabolism (Unsplash/Thought Catalog)

JAKARTA – Metabolism is the process by which the body's cells convert energy sources, such as sugar and fat, into usable energy. Sugar and fat are converted by all cells, including muscle cells, into adenosine triphosphate or ATP so that they can contract during normal activities.

Some lifestyle mistakes have a big impact on the body's metabolism. Wrong habits can make weight loss difficult. Apparently, the habits below are actually prone to slowing down the body's metabolism.

1. Eating too few calories

Instead of losing weight, lowering your daily calorie intake actually slows down your resting metabolism significantly. A study proved in a study, when obese women ate 420 calories per day for 4-6 months, the number of calories burned during rest decreased dramatically.

As reported by Healthline, Thursday, November 25, a decrease in calorie intake turns your body into feeling scarce food and reduces the work of burning calories. The recommendation is to choose healthy calorie sources with not too many cuts in your intake so that your metabolism continues to work optimally.

2. Consume fewer protein foods

Research shows that protein boosts metabolism. Even the thermic effect of protein is higher than that of carbohydrates and fats. Increased metabolism of protein about 20-30 percent, higher than carbohydrates about 5-10 percent, and 3 percent fat.

The most surprising finding was that the less protein consumption, the fewer calories for daily energy. Although the decrease is not too significant or about 97 calories from 297-423 when consuming less protein. But it is recommended to consume 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight or 1.2 x 70 kilograms = 84 grams of protein per day. This is necessary to prevent the body's metabolism from slowing down during and after weight loss.

3. Less movement

A sedentary lifestyle is often unnoticed as an obstacle to the work of metabolism. This means that inactivity can lead to a significant reduction in the number of calories burned each day. His recommendation, in addition to regular exercise, standing activities, climbing stairs, cleaning the house can help burn calories.

4. Lack of sleep quality

A number of studies have noted that lack of sleep can lower metabolic rates and can actually lead to weight gain. Worse yet, poor sleep quality increases the risk of a number of diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and depression.

5. Too much sweet drinks

Sugary drinks are harmful to health. Consuming too much sugar has been linked to insulin resistance, diabetes, and obesity. The reason, often consuming sugary drinks can slow down the body's metabolism.

So that the body's metabolism does not slow down, the findings of a study prove that strength training or cardio exercise, for example, helps increase the metabolic rate in a healthy body condition. Those of you who have heart disease and are overweight are also advised to do sports that hone the body's strength to help increase metabolism.