Training & Nutrition - Do foods harm you more if you have higher metabolism?

Ok my situation: I have a pretty high metabolism; if I eat 2x the normal diet, I get 2x the amount of carbs, fine, but I also get 2x the amount of cholesterol and fat.
Would 2x the metabolism mean I burn 2x the amount of fat and cholesterol and therefore I get the same exposure as a normal person?
Or would that mean that even though I burn the same % of my food that I eat as a normal person (since I eat 2x as much but burn 2x as much), I would accumulate 2x the amount of fat and cholesterol and therefore be twice as worse off?

This is a big question that would really need tonnes o' references to answer properly, but, as an undergarduate nutrition student, I would say that excess saturated fat and cholesterol would be more damaging, regardless of your metabolic rate.

This is pretty standard advice: try to go for unsaturated fats (non animal) when choosing energy dense foods, and when selecting carbohydrate foods, try to have those that have a low glycaemic index rating(low insulin response). Recent research is suggesting that high glycaemic index foods may be determental to long term health.

To simplfy it I would say that you can't expect to stuff yourself with all kinds of stuff and not expect to suffer some sort of consequences down the track, even if you're thin. Thin people have clogged arteries too; just look at Letterman.

Cycling is a tough sport to do if you're trying to gain weight because it usually involves high volume training, therefore (obviously) you're expending a lot of energy. Have you tried not riding and just doing weights for a few months?

Well my problem isn't weight gaining, it's just keeping myself from starving.
I've eaten an 18 ounce steak with a full side of mashed potatoes and veggies and was starving in about 2 hours. Or half a box of pasta for that matter. 4 slices of sausage, olives, mushrooms, and extra cheese pizza. etc.
I eat a lot and I still feel hungry, so I eat some more. I'm concerned because I seem to "need" to eat a lot more than a normal person and I'm afraid that it'll just lead to my body taking in more stuff that I can't get rid of like saturated fats or cholesterols.

I am in the same boat as slvoid...except its not 4 slices of pizza it's like the whole pizza and looking for more!

I eat 6 weetbix (some times 8 or 10) at 8am and by 9:30 am hungry.

Brendon

I am in the same boat as slvoid...except its not 4 slices of pizza it's like the whole pizza and looking for more!

I eat 6 weetbix (some times 8 or 10) at 8am and by 9:30 am hungry.

Brendon

Aren't you about 17 years old?

As I remember, I could eat a whole loaf of toasted bread covered with peanut butter at 17, and still not gain weight. I think you are describing a normal hunger for an active and still growing person.

But, of course, you've got to fill up with nutritious foods, not saturated fats. Fortunately, when I was 17, 47 years ago, no one knew about saturated fats so I could eat the PB with absolutely no guilt!

Aren't you about 17 years old?

As I remember, I could eat a whole loaf of toasted bread covered with peanut butter at 17, and still not gain weight. I think you are describing a normal hunger for an active and still growing person.

But, of course, you've got to fill up with nutritious foods, not saturated fats. Fortunately, when I was 17, 47 years ago, no one knew about saturated fats so I could eat the PB with absolutely no guilt!

Hehe I'm pretty sure I've stopped growing and that's what worries me.

I'm one of those lucky people that can eat, without putting on weight, But I am not an excessive eater. Due to a bypass 5 years ago, I have to think of cholesterol, and I try to stay clear of the wrong type of food, for this very reason. Problem comes about with the excessive training that I am doing at present, as I am always hungry, so have changed my diet slightly to give me high carbo hydrate foods, to cater for this. I still do not pig out, but by eating a "more" correct diet for the bodies requirements, I can still eat as much as i want, still keep the energy levels up for that exercise, and still lose a few lbs a week, to get down to my target weight of 145lbs.

Incidentally, cholesterol builds up over the years, and stays there. It doesn't matter how much you exercise, the cholesterol does not go away. Luckily for most people it will not cause a problem, but wrong diet in younger years WILL cause a problem in later life.

So basically even if my body burns more calories, it will only get rid of cholesterol at the same rate as a person of average metabolism and will accumulate more of it through my lifetime?

So basically even if my body burns more calories, it will only get rid of cholesterol at the same rate as a person of average metabolism and will accumulate more of it through my lifetime?


Cholesterol is one of those funny "Chemicals" that do not pass straight through the body. You do need a certain amount of them, but if you forever eat "Junk"food,High in the wrong sort of cholesterol, and insufficient of the Correct food(Rabbit food I call it), then you will have a cholesterol problem later in life. The moral is:if there is one, cut down on fats, have a boring diet of protein that only seems to include chicken or french cheese, and eat plenty of vegetables and salad stuff, and you will have a healthy life and long life.Burning calories and extra exercise will not help you if you eat the wrong sort of food.

Just to give you an idea, I have always had an active sports life. Took up cycling in 91 as an easier way to exercise and really got into it. In 99 at 52 had a bypass. I've always had an active life, not overweight, never taken drugs of any form, so why did I have a problem. Job? 20 tears as a sales rep, hurried lunches or a pasty and a bun(High cholesterol items) and a new thought is Carbon monoxide. Blocked arteries can hit anyone, could be genetic or it could be poor eating habits over many years.
Talking of body weight, I am now at my heaviest ever at 155lbs I am getting down to 145 by extra exercise, but I do want to get down to 140 by the end of the year.

I've eaten an 18 ounce steak with a full side of mashed potatoes and veggies and was starving in about 2 hours. Or half a box of pasta for that matter. 4 slices of sausage, olives, mushrooms, and extra cheese pizza. etc.

man, save some food for the rest of us!! :p

Well, you probably can eat a little more cholesterol and saturated fat then an average person and get away with it.

However, the single biggest risk to circulatory problems is diet. That means saturated fats, trans fats, and cholesterol. Exercise will reduce your chances of problems but even a very active exercise program will not eliminate the affects of a poor diet.

I have found that as I add calories to meet my increased caloric requirements, I have to increase them with things that are reasonably healthy: fruits, vegetables, breads, etc. Of course, I am considerably older then you are and the days of the youthful high metabolic rate are well in the past. I can achieve something like it by doing a very large number of miles over a sustained period but that is not really practical.