What does it mean to burn fewer calories at rest? Nutrition coaches and sports medicine experts explain that understanding this aspect of metabolism can offer valuable insights into your overall health without getting bogged down in complex charts or endless calorie counts.
Here, we’ll examine what a low resting metabolic rate means for your body and how it may impact your energy levels and overall fitness journey. We’ll also discuss the key factors that influence this rate. Let’s get started.
About low resting metabolic rate
Resting metabolic rate (RMR) refers to the number of calories your body burns while you’re at rest. Your RMR accounts for vital functions like breathing, circulating blood, and maintaining body temperature. If your RMR is low, it means your body uses fewer calories even when you’re not active.
A lower RMR doesn’t necessarily spell trouble. It simply indicates that your body is burning energy at a slower pace. Some people may naturally have a lower RMR due to genetics, while others might notice changes as they age.
Over time, muscle mass tends to decline while body fat may increase, both of which can contribute to a lower RMR. For many fitness enthusiasts, this can result in challenges like maintaining weight or building muscle without adjusting their diet or exercise routines.
It’s not all about the numbers, though. A low RMR can affect your energy balance, making it harder to shed excess weight. Understanding your RMR can provide a guide for creating a more effective health plan tailored to your goals.
Factors that affect your resting metabolic rate
Various factors influence your RMR, some controllable, others not. Here’s what could be impacting it:
- Age: Metabolism naturally slows as you age. Starting in your 20s, you may notice a gradual decline in the energy your body burns at rest.
- Gender: Men typically have a higher RMR than women, often due to greater muscle mass and lower body fat percentages.
- Body composition: Muscle burns more calories than fat. Higher muscle mass translates to a higher RMR, while more body fat is associated with a lower RMR.
- Weight: Heavier individuals tend to have a higher RMR since their bodies require more energy for basic functions. However, the quality of weight—lean muscle versus fat—matters more than the scale number.
- Hormones: Thyroid hormones significantly influence metabolism. An underactive thyroid can lower your RMR.
- Environmental temperature: Internal and external temperatures affect energy use. In colder environments, your body may burn additional calories to stay warm.
- Diet: Extremely low-calorie diets can cause your metabolism to slow as your body conserves energy. Even brief periods of under-eating may lead to a lower RMR.
These factors interact in distinct ways, and even small adjustments can have a big impact over time. Fitness professionals stress that integrating resistance training to build muscle or making minor tweaks to your diet can lead to noticeable improvements. By focusing on the elements you can control, you can gradually pave the way toward a healthier, more balanced life.