Lifestyle

Turn Your Metabolism into a Campfire

couple eating
by Don Saladino, holistic fitness expert and trainer to celebrities, athletes and New York City policemen, Don is a Garden of Life brand advocate and owner of Drive495, a state-of-the-art, 15,000 square foot golf and fitness training facility in New York. www.donsaladino.com

 

After being in this industry for over 15 years, the reality is that most of the time, what people are seeking almost always reverts back to—losing body fat. Despite each individual having various goals, I rarely encounter someone who doesn’t want to lean out or achieve a certain aesthetic.

One area that I never really had a problem with is training someone to develop a fast metabolism, so let’s get into how I do this. Many of you might feel that some of the strategy is counter intuitive to everything you’ve learned in the past. However, I rarely meet anyone who has both a fast metabolism and poor energy levels.

So here is an analogy I love using with everyone I work with. . .

It’s called “turning your metabolism into a campfire.” So let’s envision that we’re lighting two campfires next to each other. One fire we continuously feed wood and kindling. The other fire we don’t add anything. It’s pretty obvious in which direction each fire is going. The second will burn out, but the campfire we fed will continue to get more and more powerful.

This effect is exactly what I want for your metabolism. So how do we do this? We do it by feeding ourselves small, balanced, high-quality meals throughout the day. A big part of the problem with trying to get leaner is that most people think skipping meals will help them be successful in achieving their goals. Now, being in a caloric deficit will enable someone to lose weight to an extent, but if done incorrectly, it will throw your blood sugar off completely and you’ll find yourself having obnoxious cravings throughout the day. These cravings mean you’re not properly fueled. Eating small, balanced, high quality meals throughout the day combats these cravings because it ensures you are properly fueled.

This can be very simple:

  • Each meal or snack should be a balance of protein, slow digesting carbs (gluten free oats, rice, sweet potato) and vegetables. An example from my personal menu is organic chicken, sweet potato and baby kale.

  • Don’t go more than three hours between meals/snacks, as that flame will diminish.

  • Remember that if you are fighting cravings, you may want to assess if there are any gaps throughout the day where you could be increasing your caloric intake.

  • Filling those gaps with timely meals will reduce cravings so you don’t sabotage your goals in the long run.

  • Keeping up with a steady feed will create this campfire effect, ensuring your metabolism is consistently revved and you will see much more progress in your body composition goals.


In order to avoid risk of injury, please seek advice directly from your physician, especially if you have existing medical issues, before beginning any exercise or nutritional program. Also, be sure to stretch after exercise to avoid muscle and joint tightness.
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