In the absence of oxygen, the pyruvates are fermented into lactate, which recycles NADH into its oxidizing form, NAD+. If oxygen is present, the cell can reap much more energy through the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate and the citric acid cycle. Pyruvate at the Crossroads A cell can use the product of glycolysis, pyruvate, in several metabolic pathways besides decarboxylation.
Turns out the old notion of eating a meal every three to four hours to ramp up oneâs metabolism wasnât exactly perfect advice. In fact, how frequently someone eats has little to do with the speed of their metabolism.
While you don't have much control over the speed of your basal metabolism, you can control how many calories you burn through your level of physical activity. The more active you are, the more calories you burn. In fact, some people who are said to have a fast metabolism are probably just more active â and maybe more fidgety â than are others.