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Female Fat Metabolism
By: Daryl Browne
Fat metabolism has become a key component in the battle of the bulge for many female clients. Current research shows that, although exercise and training increase the amount of fat metabolized, there are gender differences in the way we store and metabolize fat during rest and exercise.
Most of the current research states that the proportion of energy derived from fat are increased during low to moderate intensity exercise in women as compared to men. Although there is a handful of research on this topic additional research is needed to determine the exact mechanisms involved in this difference between genders and why the increase in fat metabolism is evident during exercise but not at rest. Differences in percent body fat, distribution of body fat, hormonal responses to exercise, and hormone receptor type and sensitivity may all contribute to gender-related differences in fat metabolism.
3 simple tips for women to optimise fat metabolism during aerobic exercise:
1) Regularly incorporate cardio-respiratory workouts that are low intensity for a longer duration. Why? Most research shows that women derive a greater proportion of their energy expenditure from fats during low to moderate intensity exercise, relative to men.
2) Incorporate some cardio-respiratory workouts that are of higher intensity for a shorter period of time. This may best be realized with high intensity continuous training or perhaps with interval training. Why? As exercise intensity increases, the percent of energy derived from fat decreases. However, the absolute amount of energy derived from fat is actually increased, for males and females. As exercise intensity increases, so does total energy expenditure (caloric expenditure). Even though a smaller percentage of the energy expenditure is coming from fat, more kcals of fat are burned, because there is greater absolute energy expenditure.
3) Incorporate various modes of training, often referred to as cross-training (Kravitz & Vella, 2002). Why? The theory of multi-mode training suggests that by training on different modes of exercise, the body is averted from getting overly fatigued and from overuse of the same muscles in the same movement patterns. This helps to thwart the occurrence of musculoskeletal system stress, aiding in the prevention of muscle soreness and injuries. Therefore, theoretically, a person will be able to safely do more work, more frequently, which equates to higher total energy expenditure and fat utilization.
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