Metabolic flexibility is the ability of your body to use whatever food you are eating for energy. In patients with metabolic dysfunction, the body may not be able to adapt well in using different energy sources. Dr. Nathan Jenkins is an integrative exercise physiologist who leads a team of researchers at the University of Georgia studying the effects of exercise on cardiovascular and metabolic health. His team is responsible some of the cutting edge of the latest research around metabolic flexibility.
In today’s episode, Dr. Jenkins defines metabolic flexibility, how he measures it in the laboratory, and lays out the state of the most current evidence.
 
Today on The Lab Report:

3:10 Meet Dr. Jenkins and hear why he studies exercise physiology
8:05 Metabolic Flexibility and how it’s measured
12:08 Fast/slow metabolism and basal metabolic rate
15:40 The importance of postprandial fat oxidation
23:00 Types of exercise on metabolic flexibility
29:20 Maximizing metabolic flexibility by timing food and exercise
32:50 Ketogenic diets and exercise
39:42 The Fireball

Additional Resources:
Acute exercise effects on postprandial fat oxidation: meta-analysis and systematic review
Tabata-style functional exercise increases resting and postprandial fat oxidation but does not reduce triglyceride concentrations
UGA Integrative Cardiovascular Physiology Laboratory
 
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