Yesterday I posed a question to you about the two factors that were found to predict metabolic rate in women. It is well established that lean body mass determines metabolic rate in men, however recent research has shown that this may not be the case for women… This study had 24 male athletes & 13 female athletes. The objective was to figure out how the metabolic rate [how much energy is burned at rest, aka Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR)] is determined in men and women. - Resting metabolic rate (RMR) was measured twice, with a gap between measurements. - Equations were used to predict RMR. These equations were then compared with the actual lab measurements to assess which equation was the most accurate. The main goal was to identify which factors actually predict RMR. The Cunningham equation was the closest predictor for RMR (within 158 kcal/d for men, 103 kcal/d for women). For men, muscle mass mattered most, while for women, the story was completely different… The TWO factors that determined women’s metabolic rate were: 1) much they ate 2) how much they moved. Key Takeaways: - Food intake and activity matter most for female athletes - Reducing calories and not exercising or moving much does the opposite & slows the metabolic rate -Healthy whole foods tend to be lower in calories than processed foods. So the more you eat healthy whole foods, the greater the volume of food you can eat, and thereby boost your metabolic rate higher -Protein content boosts metabolic rate; prioritizing protein will increase the thermic effect of food (TEF) whereby 20-30-% of the calories consumed as protein will be burned to breakdown the protein and initiate Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS). Check out @toneprotein for a high quality protein supplement! -If you want to have a high metabolic rate, eat a lot of healthy whole foods, prioritize protein, and move your body daily Did the findings about what predicts women’s metabolic rate in this study surprise you? Comment below 👇 Listen to the @optimalproteinpodcast for full breakdowns of studies like this and the latest research!