Can strength training improve metabolism for boys?

For the vast majority of boys, regular strength training can indeed improve metabolism, but it is not as exaggerated as the "you can lose several pounds just lying down after training" as exaggerated on the Internet. As for how much it can increase, the fitness circle has been quarreling and there is no accurate estimate. In fact, it just depends on the situation.

I took care of a little brother who was a programmer two years ago. When he first came here, he was 175cm and only 58kg. He was very weak. His resting metabolism was only 1180 calories, which was lower than girls of the same weight. He always complained that he was "fat even if he drank cold water". In fact, his metabolism was too low, and he couldn't digest anything high in oil. Later, I fixed strength training three times a week, rotating my chest, shoulders, back and legs, and added 20 minutes of climbing after each training. After a year of persistence, my weight increased to 70kg, and my body fat was still maintained at 14%. When I measured my metabolism, it was already at 1520. I consumed more than 300 calories a day for no reason, which is equivalent to eating an extra bowl and a half of rice every day without increasing the scale. Now I occasionally go out with my colleagues to have skewers and drink beer, and I don’t have to run 5 kilometers to pay off debts like before.

Of course, many people say that strength training increases metabolism as an IQ tax. In fact, it is not unreasonable. If you just think of going to the gym to pump iron twice and rest for half a month after training, the metabolic improvement you can feel is basically only the EPOC (that is, excess oxygen consumption after exercise) of the day after training. At most, you consume 100 calories more than usual, which is not enough to reward you with the bottle of iced Coke after training. Of course, it is useless. There are also veteran natural fitness experts who have been practicing for four or five years. Their muscle mass has almost reached their genetic ceiling. No matter how much weight and capacity they add, their metabolism will not increase by 50 calories in a year. There is really no need to worry about improving metabolism.

But for most boys who usually sit for a long time and have low muscle mass, the metabolic improvement brought by strength training is really cost-effective. Just think about it, one kilogram of muscle can consume about 13 kcal a day while lying down, and one kilogram of fat only consumes 2 kcal. It takes you three to five months to gain 5 kilograms of pure muscle, and you will consume 55 more kcal a day, which is 20,000 kcal in a year, which is equivalent to losing five or six kilograms of pure fat out of thin air. If you control your mouth a little, you don't have to worry about getting fat after sitting for a long time after the age of thirty.

But don’t make this effect a myth. I have seen many young men feel that their metabolism is invincible after just two months of training. They supper on hot pot and fried chicken every night. The fat will increase much faster than the muscles. When the time comes, the metabolism will indeed be higher when the weight increases, but the fat is really fat, and the gain is not worth the loss.