Why an Insulin-Resistant Body Can’t Become Fat-Adapted

How insulin sensitivity and fat-adaptation can improve our metabolism, health, and fitness with proven strategies

I Reversed My Prediabetes in My mid-20s and Got a Six-Pack in 50s

I was in my mid-20s when I was diagnosed with metabolic syndrome and prediabetes. I was overweight and out of shape, and I always felt terrible. I was always tired, had no energy, and was always hungry.

I tried everything to lose weight and get healthy. I went on numerous diets, exercised intensely, including marathon running, and took supplements, but nothing seemed to work. I was starting to lose hope.

But then, I took personal responsibility for my health and discovered two powerful metabolic shifts that changed my life: insulin sensitivity and fat-adaptation.

Insulin sensitivity is the ability of our cells to respond to insulin. When our cells are insulin-sensitive, they can take in glucose from our bloodstream and use it for energy properly and prevent metabolic disorders.

Fat adaptation is the ability of our bodies to use fat for fuel instead of sugar from carbohydrates. When we’re fat-adapted, the body is better able to burn stored fat for energy during exercise and rested periods.

I SAW EXCELLENT RESULTS when I started to focus on improving my insulin sensitivity and fat-adaptation. I lost visceral fat, gained lean muscles, got my energy back, and felt mentally and emotionally better than I had in my younger years. I gained a defined body, got six-pack abs in my 50s, and felt younger than before.

I’m not alone in experiencing these benefits. I’ve seen these shifts work wonders for countless others and read piles of research on the subject.

If you’re struggling with your health, I encourage you to learn more about insulin sensitivity and fat-adaptation. These two metabolic shifts could be the key to effortlessly transforming your health and fitness.

This story is not about a diet program or supplements. It is about holistic lifestyle choices. Since I wrote hundreds of wellness and lifestyle-related articles, covering them in a 10-minute-long story is impossible. I linked some critical ones for readers interested in details.

Why an Insulin-Resistant Body Can’t Become Fat-Adapted

Have you ever wondered why some people find it challenging to switch to a fat-burning mode even when they’re trying to follow a low-carb or ketogenic diet?

The answer lies in the relationship between insulin resistance and the body’s inability to become fat-adapted.

Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels by allowing glucose (sugar) to enter cells for energy. However, in insulin-resistant people, cells become less responsive to the effects of insulin. This means that glucose has a harder time entering cells, leading to elevated blood sugar levels.

When I talk about becoming fat-adapted, I’m referring to the body’s ability to efficiently use fats as a primary energy source instead of relying on dietary sugar. This metabolic shift is especially beneficial for healthy weight management and sustained energy levels.

Why is insulin resistance a barrier to fat-adaptation?

Insulin resistance creates a metabolic hurdle for achieving fat-adaptation. When insulin is elevated (hyperinsulinemia) due to insulin resistance, the body remains in a state that prioritizes using glucose for energy.

In this scenario, the body struggles to tap into its fat stores effectively, hindering the transition to fat-adaptation.

Insulin resistance triggers a chain reaction that affects how our cells process nutrients. When insulin levels are high, the body’s ability to access and utilize stored fat is compromised. Instead, it continues to rely on glucose for energy, making it difficult to enter a fat-burning mode.

Insulin resistance is linked to cardiometabolic issues like obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and heart disease. These conditions are characterized by elevated blood sugar levels, increased inflammation, and difficulties in managing body fat. The inability to become fat-adapted further exacerbates these problems.

I provided six reasons to switch to a fat-adapted state in a previous article. In summary, they are:

1 — Healthy weight management and desired fat loss when needed.

2 — Improved cardio-metabolic health

3 — Increased physical and mental energy

4 — Reduced oxidative stress and inflammation

5 — Improved Mental and Neurological Health

6 — Better Hormonal Balance

As I wrote many articles about insulin resistance and sensitivity, I will not go into detail in this short story. If you want to learn about my experience and research, you may check the stories linked in the attached list.

6 Steps and Practical Tips to Make the Body More Insulin Sensitive and Fat-Adapted

Step 1: Ditch snacks and practice time-restricted eating.

When it comes to improving insulin sensitivity, one of the most effective things we can do is to ditch frequent snacking and start time-restricted eating, also known as intermittent fasting.

When we snack frequently, our digestive system is constantly at work, preventing it from resting and rejuvenating. This can lead to high insulin levels, which can hinder fat-burning processes.

A practical approach to managing blood glucose and insulin spikes is to minimize snacking whenever possible. This might involve skipping a meal or adopting intermittent fasting, limiting our eating to a specific time window, often around eight hours.

Doing so gives our digestive system a chance to rest, reduce insulin fluctuations, and tap into stored fat for energy.

During fasting, the body exhausts its glycogen stores and begins using stored fat as a primary energy source. As fasting extends beyond 16 hours or more, the body’s fat-burning mechanisms increase significantly.

Some people even explore longer-term fasting to trigger processes like autophagy and mitophagy, which cleanse cells, increase the production of ketone bodies for clean energy, reduce chronic inflammation, boost growth hormone levels, and enhance cognitive health through BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor) activation and boosting.

Step 2: Reduce refined carbohydrates and junk food.

Refining carbohydrates strips them of nutrients and fiber, leaving behind simple sugars that can quickly spike blood sugar and insulin levels. This can lead to fat gain, insulin resistance, and other metabolic health problems.

To improve insulin sensitivity, reducing our intake of refined carbohydrates and junk food is essential. This includes foods like white bread, pasta, sugary drinks, and processed snacks.

Instead, you might focus on eating complex carbohydrates from whole foods, like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. These foods are digested more slowly and release glucose into the bloodstream gradually, which can keep blood sugar and insulin levels in check.

A recent clinical study found remarkable results from lowering carbs.

Step 3: Embrace healthy fats and biovailable proteins.

When we eat enough healthy fats and bioavailable proteins, it’s like giving our body the tools it needs to burn fat effectively and balance hormones.

Healthy fats provide energy, while proteins partially give energy and help the body do its building work. When we include healthy fats in our meals, the body can use proteins how they’re meant to be used, promoting better muscle, bone, and hormonal health.

Healthy fats aren’t just an energy source; they also help balance our hormones. Some important hormones like leptin and adiponectin rely on these fats to do their jobs properly.

Therefore, ditching fats completely isn’t the way to go. I’ve learned from my own experiences overcoming my fear of fats. In fact, I found that getting about 70% of my daily calories from healthy fats was a game-changer. But remember, it’s best to get these fats from natural foods, not processed ones.

One cool thing about healthy fats is that they don’t cause those quick spikes in insulin that carbs do. By making healthy fats a primary energy source, the body becomes more in tune with insulin and better at burning fat.

I aimed for around 200 grams each day when I switched to healthy fats. This regimen gave me steady and clean energy while helping my body get really good at using fat for fuel and optimizing my hormones.

Step 4: Move the body regularly and joyfully.

Keeping the body active and joyful through regular workouts is a fantastic strategy for those who may find fasting or dietary changes challenging.

Exercising and everyday activities like chores can help us burn calories effectively. Specific exercises, like intense workouts and resistance training, can continue to burn calories even after we’ve finished exercising.

However, striking a balance is crucial, as excessive exercise can lead to hormonal imbalances, particularly the stress hormone cortisol.

Tailoring our exercise routine to our body’s needs is key. Before starting any exercise plan, it’s wise to consult qualified healthcare professionals who can consider our medical history and advise on suitable exercise types.

Depending on individual factors, different people may benefit from various approaches, like weight lifting, calisthenics, resistance training, moderate cardio, trampolining, or high-intensity training.

A great way to enhance insulin sensitivity is by taking a 30-minute walk within two hours after main meals. This timing aligns with the body’s digestion process, helping to control insulin spikes and lower blood glucose levels.

Exercise also activates the lymphatic system, supporting detoxification. Neglecting physical activity can disrupt hormone balance, potentially leading to health issues in the long term.

Incorporating exercise into daily life is essential for most people, except those with specific health conditions. Research shows that dedicating 150 minutes per week to exercise can reduce the risk of metabolic disorders, including certain cancers.

Treating exercise as a hobby and finding opportunities for physical activity in daily routines can be remarkably beneficial. This approach burns calories and contributes to insulin sensitivity, fat-adaptation, and overall fitness and well-being.

Step 5: Manage oxidative stress and chronic inflammation.

Oxidative stress can throw off our body’s metabolic balance. It disrupts how we process glucose and lipids, affects how our mitochondria work, and sets off inflammatory pathways.

When we’re under too much stress, our hormones can go haywire, causing us to gain weight and suffer from metabolic problems.

This oxidative stress can also lead to inflammation. Chronic inflammation, in turn, messes up how our body manages its metabolism. It interferes with how insulin signals are transmitted, throws off fat metabolism, messes with our fat tissues, and even affects our immune system and the functioning of our mitochondria.

To counter this, our body pumps out stress hormones, like cortisol, to help manage the situation. However, high cortisol levels, which rely on glucose, can hinder muscle growth and prevent visceral fat burning, even if we’re exercising more.

There are ways to combat this, though. We can minimize stress and inflammation by avoiding foods our digestive system struggles with, steering clear of toxins and pathogens, staying active, getting enough quality sleep, and ensuring we have time to rest and recover.

Slowing down and allowing ourselves to rest is vital to keep chronic stress and inflammation at bay. Ensuring you get adequate sleep, rest, and recovery is essential for maintaining metabolic balance. Insufficient sleep and rest can disrupt hormonal regulation and cause an increase in appetite, leading to overeating and insulin spikes.

Emotional stress can also throw off our metabolic balance. When we’re dealing with excess emotional stress, our hormones can get out of whack, and our immune system can become weak and compromised.

6 — Leverage the power of adaptive thermogenesis and thermoregulation.

Our defense system can face a tough challenge from toxins and pathogens, which can harm our metabolism. Our body stores these harmful substances in fat cells as a survival strategy when we encounter them.

The more fat we accumulate, the more of these harmful agents we retain, potentially increasing inflammation and disturbing the body’s delicate balance. This, in turn, can lead to metabolic and other health issues.

The good news is that there are solutions to tackle toxins and pathogens in our environment. One of these solutions involves thermogenesis and thermoregulation, a process that can kickstart our lymphatic system, helping eliminate toxins and pathogens from the body and bolstering our immune system.

Adaptive thermogenesis and thermoregulation come into play when our body adjusts its temperature, like when we’re exposed to cold or heat.

The exciting thing is that both hot and cold temperatures can activate our lymphatic system. To tap into this, we can adopt various lifestyle habits. For instance, indulging in cold showers, ice baths, and dry saunas can work wonders.

Dry saunas generate intense heat that aids in the removal of toxins and pathogens. Conversely, exposure to extreme cold, like taking cold showers or dipping into ice baths, can use up more energy and even change fat color from white to brown.

Conclusions and Takeaways

Learning about the connection between insulin resistance and the body’s ability to become fat-adapted sheds light on the complexities of our metabolism.

Addressing insulin resistance can pave the way for a more successful transition to a fat-burning mode, supporting our fitness, overall health, and wellness journey.

In essence, achieving fat adaptation, or keto-adaptation, entails training our bodies to rely on dietary or stored fat as the primary fuel source through ketosis instead of solely depending on carbohydrates or stored glycogen for energy.

Nevertheless, it’s important to note that the body still requires sugar, which it can create through gluconeogenesis even without carb intake. This process is controlled and well-regulated in healthy people.

Effective fat loss hinges on maintaining hormonal balance and a caloric deficit. This involves moderating food intake, increasing physical activity to boost energy expenditure, lowering stress with restorative sleep, rest, and recovery, and exposing the body to cold temperatures for thermic effects.

However, it’s crucial to strike a balance. Extreme caloric deficits can lead to muscle loss and undesirable health outcomes, like a sluggish metabolism and potential nutrient deficiencies.

A more sustainable approach lies in achieving a fat-adapted state, where the body becomes adept at burning stored fat for fuel.

The key takeaway from this exploration is centered around modifying dietary habits, steering clear of a sedentary lifestyle, managing stress, and capitalizing on thermogenesis to foster a fat-adapted and fat-burning metabolism.

Of course, it’s worth highlighting that the approach detailed in this piece might not be suitable for everyone. Individual circumstances vary. Some may find that a glucose-burning metabolism is more fitting for specific reasons mandated by their health conditions.

People with underlying health conditions need to seek professional guidance as needed before trying fat-adaptation.

Thank you for engaging with my insights. My best wishes for your journey towards a healthy and joyful life.

I wrote many articles about major health conditions. You may find them in the attached list easily. Please share the relevant ones with your friends so that they can benefit from my research and experience.

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