I’m Doing Everything Right So Why Is My Metabolism Still Slow?

Hey, it's J.J. here. You know, I've been talking about environmental toxins forever, and laundry detergent is a sneaky one. A lot of them contain harsh chemicals like dyes, preservatives, and even UV brighteners. Those brighteners don't actually clean anything. They just coat fabric so your eyes think things look whiter or brighter. That's more chemicals I don't want on my family sheets or skin. And if you've got sensitive skin or allergies around the house, this can be a big problem. That's what got my attention about Earth Breeze. It looks like a dryer sheet, but it's actually laundry detergent. You toss one in the washer and that's it. No pouring, no mess, and no heavy plastic jug. Their packaging is lightweight cardboard, which helps reduce plastic waste. And if you choose the fragrance free option, it's gentle, hypoallergenic, non irritating, and non sensitizing. I really like how simple it is and how fresh and clean everything comes out without those unnecessary chemicals. Right now you can try Earth Breeze for up to 40% off with free gifts@earthbreeze.com virgin that's earthbreeze.com virgin for up to 40% off plus free gifts on your first order. Hey, JJ here. Can you believe how fast the holidays are knocking at the door this year? One minute it's pumpkin spice season, the next you're getting your guest room ready and wondering where their wrapping paper went. And that's when I turned to Wayfair. From bedding and towels to holiday decor and last minute stocking stuffers, Wayfair has everything you need to get your home and holidays together fast. And for way less. With Wayfair, I know I can refresh my guest room in no time. Maybe I'll add a soft new comforter or a few holiday throw pillows. With Wayfair, it's so easy and everything arrives super fast. Plus, there's free shipping for any order over $35 easy and total peace of mind. So whether you're hosting, gifting, or just adding those final festive touches, Wayfair has your back. And when the holidays wind down, Wayfair has everything you need to tuck it all neatly away. Smart storage solutions for every room from the kitchen to the closet. Get organized, refreshed and ready for the holidays. For way less, head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. Wayfair. Every style, every home that's W a Y F A I R.com the holidays are almost here.

But there's still time to score great gifts at Dick's Sporting Goods. Find everyone's must have gifts from Nike, FP movement, Adidas, and more. Need your gifts fast? Stop by your local Dick's or shop Dick's.com for fast shipping, curbside pickup or same day delivery. Every holiday starts at Dick's.

I'm doing everything right, so why is my metabolism still slow? Hey, this is JJ Virgin, four time New York Times bestselling authority, celebrity nutrition expert and fitness hall of famer. You know, I've been on a lifelong quest for answers to the toughest health questions, and now I'm sharing what I found with you. Welcome to Ask the Health Expert. Each week I answer big questions directly.

From you, the people in my community.

And chances are they're topics that you've been wondering about as well. If you'd like to submit a question for me to answer on a future episode, please do by going to jjvirgin.com or forward/ question. Brittany from Instagram asks. I'm doing everything right, so why is my metabolism still slow? Okay, Brittany, here's the bigger question. What is making you think that your metabolism is slow? I'm going to be right back to really unpack how we can get your metabolism working well and kind of what the bigger question might be here.

Hey, it's J.J. here. Now, let's be honest. The holidays are basically a financial ambush. Travel, hosting gifts, surprise holiday school things. Suddenly you're wondering how December turned into a spending spree. If you want to keep your finances under control this holiday season, you need to be using Monarch. It's rated the Wall Street Journal's best budgeting app of 2025. Monarch is the all in one personal finance tool that brings your entire financial life together in one clean interface on your laptop or your phone. What really grabbed my attention is how fast those little holiday expenses pile up with Monarch. Seeing everything in one place makes it a lot harder to accidentally overspend. And honestly, I, I appreciate anything that keeps me from starting January with a money hangover. You'll love exploring the holiday spending category. Imagine how good it will feel to actually see what's happening before your credit card statement does that whole dramatic reveal thing. Monarch basically shows you exactly where the money is going in real time. And that level of clarity could change everything, right? Don't let financial opportunity slip through the cracks. You use the code virgin@monarch.com in your browser for half off your first year. That's 50% off your first year@monarch.com with code Virgin.

This episode is brought to you by Pacifico. Here's a story you've probably never heard. Legend has it, decades ago, a couple surfers went down to Mexico in search of epic swells. But they found something unexpected instead. It was still crisp, lively and smooth, but it had nothing to do with waves. It was Pacifico, a delicious Mexican lager. It's like it was brewed to be discovered. Pacifico find your own way 21+discover responsibly Pacifico Clara Beer imported by Crown Import, Chicago, IL.

So when I hear this question, I'm wondering what your indicators are when you say that it is because you can't lose weight, Is it because you're not energetic? Like, what is going on that's making you think that your metabolism is slow? Because really the only way to know how your metabolism, metabolism is really working. Or one of the ways is to do something called a bod pod where you get into this bod pod and it's going to test what your metabolism, how many calories you're really using when you are at rest, right? So then you can tell, hey, if my calorie intake is lower than it should be at rest, I've got a slow metabolism. Now there are a couple things that really are going to impact your metabolism. So a lot of this thankfully is.

Really under our control.

The first thing that you've got to check on with your metabolism is is my thyroid working well? Not is my thyroid in the range that the lab test says because that may mean that you're low thyroid, but is my thyroid working well? So you want to check your thyroid numbers, your TSH, your free T3 and T4, and if those things are not looking quite right, dig deeper into free teeth or into reverse T3 and thyroid antibodies and work with someone who really understands the subtleties of thyroid disease and how to optimize. Because if your thyroid's not working, you're not going to have a great metabolism and you're also not going to be able to do the second thing that's key important in your thyroid, in your metabolism, and that is hold on to or build muscle. I'm a big proponent of using a scale not to tell your overall weight, but to get on the scale to see what your weight is made up of. I find that for so many people, it's not that they're overweight, it's that they're under muscled and muscle is your metabolic Spanx. It holds everything in tighter and it supports a great metabolism because muscle requires more Energy to be on your body and muscle also after a workout requires more energy to get repaired to do something called muscle protein synthesis. So we have two ways to look at metabolism. What's your basal metabolic rate, what's your metabolic rate at rest, and then what can we do throughout the day to kick it up. And one of the things we can do throughout the day is to move more. Now there's exercise, but there's also something called non exercise activity thermogenesis, I. E. Fidgeting. And what they found is that people who are leaner tend to be, tend to just move more. They fidget, they move around. And so this is where if you're not a fidgeter, if your needs low, this is where something like an Apple watch or a Garmin or something that just kind of alerts you and says move, stand up, move around, get moving can be super helpful. I try to make sure that if I'm at an event, which is where you're, you know, where we have to sit and listen to something that I'm like in the back moving around, fidgeting, et cetera, I'm not just sitting on my tush, right? So that's one thing. Now of course, exercise that really help, that requires recovery. So walking is great, we should all move more, but that doesn't really require recovery. Like your body doesn't go, holy smokes, you just walk down the block. I'm out to do a lot of.

Work here to repair that.

But if you go to a gym and you work out hard and lift heavy weights, your body, body's got some recovery to do. It's got to repair, replace the oxygen debt, it's got to do muscle protein synthesis. And this is costly, it's metabolically costly and we want that. Then the final thing is digestion requires energy and specifically protein requires more energy to digest than fat or carbohydrates, 20 to 30% more. So again, I always like people to build their diet protein first and then the non starchy vegetables come in, then the healthy fats and then we see what else you might need. But protein comes first. And then one other thing I've got to mention is making sure that you've got good water intake so that you, you know, you can raise stress hormones if you don't have enough fluid. And drinking more water can boost your metabolism. So those are some simple things that you can do. And again, bigger question is if you believe your metabolism is slow, what's the evidence is that like you've done a bod pod? Or is it because you feel like you just can't lose weight and then let's really address the situation at hand. Those things I just told you, though, are great starting points, so let me know how it goes. This is JJ with Ask the Health Expert. I answer your questions weekly, plus I interview the top experts in health and wellness, so make sure you never miss a show by going to subscribetoj.com yep, it's that easy. I'll see you next time.

Hello listeners, this is Anne Bogle, author, blogger and creator of the podcast what Should I Read next? Since 2016, I've been helping readers bring more joy and delight into their reading lives. Every week I tag all things Books and Reading with a guest and guide them in discovering their next reading. They share three books they love, one book they don't, and what they've been reading lately, and I recommend three titles they may enjoy reading next. Guests have said our conversations are like therapy, troubleshooting issues that have plagued their reading lives for years and possibly the rest of their lives as well. And of course, recommending books that meet the moment. Whether they are looking for deep introspection to spur or encourage a life change or a frothy page turner to help them escape the stresses of work, school, everything, you'll learn something about yourself as a reader and you'll definitely walk away confident to choose your next read, with a whole list of new books and authors to try. So join us each Tuesday for what Should I Read Next? Subscribe now wherever you're listening to this podcast and Visit our website whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com to find out more.