While genetics play a big part in your metabolism, exercise can boost its function, allowing your body to burn energy faster and for longer and helping you lose weight.

Ever been jealous of those people with fast metabolisms that seem to be able to eat whatever they like while remaining thin? Much of the reason their metabolism fires so rapidly is to do with genetics, but even if yours is a little slower, hope is not lost – exercise can help you to kick-start it.

But before going on, it’s worth clarifying exactly what metabolism is. Everyone has probably heard of it – as it’s mentioned frequently in relation to weight loss – without fully understanding what the term means.

Metabolism is simply the process of food being converted to energy to allow your body to function. Our basal metabolic rate (BMR) refers to the amount of energy we burn or consume throughout the day to survive. While this rate differs between people, everyone can stimulate their metabolism through exercise.

Tennis Australia’s strength and conditioning coach Aaron Kellett likens metabolism to a car engine. “When we start a car it might idle at 2000 revs, which is its base rate,” he says.

“Similarly, we idle at a certain level, and when we talk about boosting metabolism, it simply means bringing that idle rate up. Physical activity is the easiest way to boost this – we have to use more energy to make our body systems work, and therefore we’ll idle higher during and for a period after exercise.”

Kellett says that the high-intensity nature of Cardio Tennis will give your metabolism a boost, and will keep it running at a higher rate up to several hours after you’ve completed your session.

Your BMR can be further boosted in the long term by increasing your lean muscle mass. According to Kellett, a higher muscle-to-fat ratio can help you “tune up” your BMR simply because muscle needs more energy to function. And that means strength training is a great option.

Strength training activities include weight-lifting, body weight exercises such as push-ups, and including these as part of a circuit-training regime.

Cardio Tennis also includes elements of strength training – among several “cardio burst” activities – that make it an effective way of enhancing your metabolic function.