You’ve probably already heard of aerobic and anaerobic workouts, but did you know the same terms can be applied to your energy metabolism? Let’s back up briefly: how much do you know about your metabolism?
Both of those questions are valid, and understanding what your metabolism is and how it works, as well as what the differences are between an aerobic and anaerobic metabolism, can help you determine what you need to do to lose weight successfully.
As you’ll see, our experts cover all of this in-depth here.
What Is Your Metabolism?
You’ve probably heard the word “metabolism” before and had a good general idea of what it is. However, to understand the differences between aerobic and anaerobic metabolisms, it’s a good idea to have a solid grasp of the concept of metabolism in general.
Metabolism Basics
When you’re at rest, your body is still burning calories. This makes sense because your digestive system is still doing its thing; the cells in your body are consuming energy as you breathe, your heart beats, and your nervous system remains functioning, even when you’re asleep.
To fuel all of those actions and more, you need to consume foods that are digested even when you’re at rest. This provides what your body needs to keep going.
Your metabolism is just that: the calories and the amount of energy that your body burns while it’s running. Your resting metabolism is measured as the energy your body needs even while you’re sleeping, sitting in front of the television, and resting outside reading a book, among other things.
Most people have a metabolism that burns some calories while their bodies are going about their normal states of business, but too often, you eat more calories than your body needs, so you’ll start to gain weight.
Speeding Up Your Metabolism
As you age, your metabolism slows down. Many other things can prevent your metabolism from acting at its highest level, including living a sedentary lifestyle, not exercising regularly, and more.
To lose weight, you’ll need to either speed up your metabolism by eating foods that take more energy to digest or by exercising and turning fat stores into muscle, which requires additional calories even at rest.
The more you move and the healthier you eat, the faster your metabolism will be. Some professional athletes have a very high metabolism and thus need to eat an enormous amount of food to get through the day.
While you, as the average person, may not reach that stage, you’ll still be able to control your metabolism and get it to speed up a bit. Doing so will help you lose weight and get closer to your fitness goals.
Types of Metabolism
Now that you have a general understanding of metabolism and what effects it, it’s time to discuss the two different types. There’s aerobic metabolism and anaerobic metabolism.
Both are related to each other, yet different at the same time. The main thing that separates them is oxygen.
Aerobic Metabolism
Aerobic metabolism uses oxygen. This is the same thing as your main metabolism, which breaks down everything you eat to turn those carbs and proteins into your body’s energy.
It does this when oxygen is present. Obviously, even when you’re at rest, you’re breathing, so your resting metabolism is aerobic.
However, when you’re exercising and doing cardio or other activities that raise your heart rate and give your cardiovascular system a workout, you still use your aerobic metabolism. The presence of oxygen remains, ensuring that your body is using standard combustion to turn those macros (carbs, fats, and proteins) into fuel.
When you practice aerobic exercise, you’re speeding up the process, thus making your body work harder to keep moving. This also speeds up your metabolism, which is why you’ll lose weight if you continue to exercise in combination with a healthy diet.
Anaerobic Metabolism
On the other hand, your anaerobic metabolism is when your body consumes calories and turns them into a source of energy without oxygen. How is this possible?
When you’re working out hard, doing quick sprints, lifting very heavy weights, or running at a super fast pace, there are some points where your lungs can’t come up with enough oxygen to fuel your body properly.
At this point, your anaerobic glycolysis kicks in. This creates the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) your body needs for high-intensityanaerobic exercise such as weightlifting.
Since you can’t function for a sustained amount of time in the absence of oxygen, you can only generate anaerobic energy for short periods as well. You’ll begin to feel out of breath and slow down your exercise routine, giving your lungs more functional oxygen and switching your metabolism back into aerobic mode.
What Happens When You’re in Anaerobic Metabolism Mode
Since your body uses the breakdown of carbohydrates and protein for energy, it’s obvious that your aerobic metabolism provides plenty of fuel that keeps you functioning. The opposite occurs when your body is in anaerobic mode.
Since there isn’t enough oxygen, your body stops processing the macros that comprise its fuel source. Instead, it will turn to the muscles for energy, making your body produce lactic acid.
The Problems With Lactic Acid
When your body doesn’t get enough oxygen due to vigorous and high-intensity activities, it starts to use your muscles for energy, causing them to produce lactic acid. This actually isn’t a good thing.
If you slow down your high-intensity exercise and go back to a regular pace, allowing your body to go back into aerobic metabolism mode, lactic acid will flow out of your muscle fibers, and you won’t be overly sore the next day.
However, if you keep pushing yourself, for example, if you’re running a marathon and haven’t properly trained, your body will stay in anaerobic metabolism mode. That lactic acid will continue to build up, making your muscles tired and sore. You may make it to the finish line of that race, but you won’t have set a new personal record, and you’ll be very sore the next day.
It can also lead to DOMS, or Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness, which causes aches and pains for several days after your last workout. The condition is caused by exercise that’s much more vigorous than what you’re used to, as well as that lactic acidbuildup. Either way, you’ll have to spend some time outside the gym until you recover fully.
Your Body Can Switch Between the Two
Usually, your body will switch between both your aerobic metabolism and your anaerobic metabolism during a workout. There might be points where your heart rate is in its target zone, meaning you have plenty of oxygen flowing through your body, and you’re burning calories at a good pace.
In addition, if you speed up your workout by doing intervals, you’ll get into the anaerobic mode, causing your muscles to become fatigued. You’ll know you’re at that point when your heart rate rises 85 percent from its resting zone.
If you keep switching between the two during your workout, you won’t have to worry about that lactic acidbuildup since it will flow out of your muscles once you get back into aerobic metabolism mode. The human body does this naturally. You just need to know when to slow your speed back down a bit.
What’s Best for Weight Loss?
Another major difference between aerobic and anaerobic metabolism is that only one is good for weight loss. While activating your anaerobic metabolism is good for building up muscles (this is why those intervals are a good idea), it doesn’t help you turn the foods you eat into energy.
Only your aerobic metabolism can do that. This is why, when your main goal is weight loss, you must keep an eye on your heart rate to ensure it stays within the fat-burning zone. Anything else will lead to a switch to your anaerobic metabolism.
Understanding Aerobic and Anaerobic Metabolism
Understanding the difference between these two types of metabolism can help you plan your workouts more effectively. Remember that if your goal is to increase your endurance and speed up your metabolism, leading to weight loss, then you must focus on your aerobic metabolism.
If you want to gain some muscle mass, then speed things up for a short time, activating your anaerobic metabolism. By using both effectively, you’ll be able to meet your goals.
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Sources:
What is Aerobic vsAnaerobic Training | Nuffield Health