What's Your Metabolic Type?

Metabolism is the process through which the body processes and burns the nutrients. Even the basal metabolism (when the person is resting) varies among different individuals. In the end, the balance between storing and burning defines the way we look.

1. Miserly type. It characterizes individuals that can store with maximum efficiency everything from food. During our evolutionary stage of hunters-gatherers, this would have meant salvation during periods of scarcity. You would have been the fittest in the tribe after not having eaten for three days. But today this means propensity to overweight and obesity, as there is no food shortage, and the junk food pumps sugars and fats into your body. And drastic diets produce the opposite of the desired effect: they fatten us even more. This organism reacts to food shortage by plummeting the basal metabolism (calories burning while resting).

Characteristics: BMI (Body mass index, weight/square height) is over 30. Over 89 cm in waist. Obese persons in the family. Continuous constipation. Liquid retention, swelling of the feet and ankles.

2. Frugal type. You are not one of those people that get fat by ...breathing and drinking water, but your body is always ready to take advantage of the food for 'worst' times. Normally, you have to combat the extra pounds through restrictions but remember that an active metabolism requires vitamins, minerals, proteins and fibers. The heat production increases after eating (the thermal effect of the foods, of metabolic origin). This heat is higher for proteins than for sugar and fats.

BMI 25-30. Waist 80 to 88 cm. Family tendency to get fat. Constipation depends on the ingested food. Liquid retention depends on times staying seated.

3. Balanced type. Your organism processes well the aliments, but by 40-50 years old your energetic necessities decrease, your body losing muscle mass for fatty tissue. Sport helps also tolerate glucose and the effects of insulin, and also increases the defenses against stress and combat the cholesterol excess.

BMI 19-24. Waist 60 to 80 cm. Family members that have always been slim. Anxiety can cause constipation. Liquid retention only in women before menstruation.

4. Extravagant type. This organism is an innate food processor, representing that minority of people that always want to gain weight. Any excessive stress or anxiety increases the burning rate significantly (translated into slimming). Such a rapid metabolism requires continuous propping-up in minerals like calcium (diary products, fish, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds), magnesium (figs, nuts, bananas), and copper (peas, beans, whole wheat, sea food). The person must eat five times a day. Supplements based on wheat germ, pollen, beer yeast and vitamins are recommended.

BMI under 18. Waist under 60 cm. It is difficult to gain more pounds. No constipation. No liquid retention.