Muscle mass has a significant impact on metabolism, particularly your basal metabolic rate (BMR) —

 

Muscle mass has a significant impact on metabolism, particularly your basal metabolic rate (BMR) — the number of calories your body burns at rest.

Here's how it works:

1. Muscle burns more calories than fat:

   • Muscle tissue is metabolically active, meaning it requires more energy (calories) to maintain than fat tissue.

   • On average, each pound of muscle burns about 6–10 calories per day at rest, compared to about 1–2 calories for a pound of fat.

2. More muscle = higher metabolism:

   • The more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn 24/7, even when you're not exercising.

   • This helps with weight management and can make fat loss more sustainable.

3. Exercise boosts the effect:

   • Strength training not only builds muscle but also causes a temporary increase in metabolic rate post-workout due to the afterburn effect (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, or EPOC).

4. Aging and metabolism:

   • As people age, they often lose muscle (sarcopenia), which slows metabolism.

   • Preserving or building muscle through resistance training can counteract age-related metabolic decline.