Thermogenesis is the creation of heat in the body. It occurs mainly in muscle and a particular type of fat called Brown Adipose Tissue (BAT). The BAT uses the fat from your White Adipose Tissue (WAT) as fuel. WAT is the fat that surrounds your organs (visceral) and forms a layer just under our skin (subcutaneous).
The thermogenic activity of BAT in hibernating mammals is how they survive the freezing conditions. Black bears, in the middle of winter, for example only drop their temperature an average of 12 deg C from the warm summer months by increasing the activity of their BAT. The amount of fat (WAT) used during this period can range from 150-300 lbs, without them having to lift a pinky.
It was thought that only human baby’s had BAT, which was lost as the human grew into adulthood. We now know this was wrong, although normal ageing and environmental conditions do reduce the amount and activity of BAT. Even so, the amount of BAT in an average human adult is sufficient to use 10-15% of their total energy, all of which comes from bodyfat. Anything you can do to stimulate BAT will reduce your bodyfat, even whilst you are sleeping.
BAT works through a process called uncoupling, which is governed by specific structures called uncoupling proteins (UCP’s). Unfortunately most popular methods of weight loss do not increase the activity of BAT. In fact, they reduce it.
The majority of weight loss programs out there, including all the mainstream groups and classes are still designed entirely on the premise of Calories In vs Calories Out, and for permanent fat loss, that’s a big no-no.
Anytime you curtail energy intake radically, you do lose weight for a few weeks, however this is mostly water (which is why the weight seems to come off so fast in the beginning). This happens because your body senses the reduction in energy intake and turns down your heat as a defensive manoeuvre to conserve its fat. Most diets that require you to reduce energy intake will reduce the activity of uncoupling proteins and subsequently the operation of BAT.
The second way most popular programs attempt to cause weight loss is through exercise, usually in the form of long duration, aerobic exercise. Even though your temperature may rise during the activity, outside of the exercise, both uncoupling and body heat production are reduced. Even if you exercise every day, the one hour you spend exercising is more than offset by the 23 hours of reduced thermogenesis caused as a result.
If you don’t manage to keep the weight off during or after you finish the program, then your thermogenic potential is severely compromised, potentially permanently. Incorrect dieting and exercise are the main reasons people continually flit from diet to diet and although performing hours and hours of aerobic exercise, remain fat.
People who have damaged their uncoupling system generally feel cold. This also compromises their immune system so they are more susceptible to chills and infections.
If you have started a weight loss program and are either experiencing these symptoms or begin to as you continue on the plan, maybe you should re-evaluate the efficacy of what you are doing, and consider a more effective alternative.
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