Question

A 26-year-old female who has a history of obesity wants to begin an exercise program and is seeking information about how to improve her general health.

a. How would the nurse approach the concept of metabolism as an energy source?

b. What is the best way to explain the body’s energy needs as it relates to exercise?

Answer 1

a) All organisms require energy to complete tasks; metabolism is the set of the chemical reactions that release energy for cellular processes.Metabolism is a combination of chemical reactions that are spontaneous and release energy and chemical reactions that are non-spontaneous and require energy in order to proceed.
Living organisms must take in energy via food, nutrients, or sunlight in order to carry out cellular processes.

All living organisms need energy to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments. Metabolism is the set of life-sustaining chemical processes that enables organisms transform the chemical energy stored in molecules into energy that can be used for cellular processes. Animals consume food to replenish energy; their metabolism breaks down the carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids to provide chemical energy for these processes.

b)Our bodies need a constant supply of energy to function properly to maintain health and internal balance. The food we eat is what provides our cells with the needed energy to survive and function properly. But before food can become a usable form of energy it has to be converted into smaller units called substrates, including carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. The energy stored in these substrate molecules is then chemically released in cells and stored in the form of a high-energy compound called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). When the chemical bonds that hold ATP together are broken, energy is released for cellular work (such as performing muscle contraction).

Muscles get energy to propel you along by tapping into your muscle glycogen (the form of carbohydrates in which carbohydrates are stored). When these are diminished, you start to depend on your blood glucose to keep going. Blood glucose is derived from carbohydrates, fat, and protein. If you can't maintain your blood sugar levels, your performance will flounder.
Carbohydrates are the largest contributor to the energy pool. Fat contributes to your energy pool over a wide range of exercise intensities but decreases as you exercise harder because carbs will contribute more. Proteins contribute less than 5 percent of energy used during exercise but contribute to your overall pool during rest. The exception to this is during endurance exercise, when your liver begins to synthesize energy from protein.