Our metabolism is responsible for ensuring that all cells and organisms remain in a living state. What we want is for our body to speed up the conversion of nutrients into energy that the body can use. Now slow and steady has always been a great motto for getting things done but not when it comes to our metabolism. To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. A person with a high metabolism uses more calories to perform all of it's required functions than a person with a lower metabolism. Fortunately, we want our metabolism to run like a speedy jet.
Below you can find some great ways to accomplish just that.
1. Build Muscle- The more muscle you have the more calories you can potentially burn when at rest. Increased muscle mass elevates your bodies thermogenesis which is the process of heat production in organisms. Think of it as your internal furnace and muscles are the coals.
2. Anaerobic Exercise- Not to be confused with aerobic exercises which would be your regular steady state cardio (think running on the treadmill for 30 minutes or the bike). It may not directly build muscle but the ability to burn fat helps to conserve muscle and contributes to your endurance capabilities. High intensity interval training will allow you to burn calories long after you have completed your workout.
3. Fuel Up With Water- If you’re mildly hydrated your metabolism will slow down. A study from the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism founds that water can help to burn fat and increases metabolic rates by approximately 30 percent in healthy men and women.
4. Snack Smart- The logic behind snacking is to normalize your insulin levels to promote better blood glucose control. Some research promotes eating when hungry but just be careful not to eat foods high in the glycemic index (high in sugar) so that you can avoid crashing after a surge of blood glucose. You can eat 6 small meals to keep your insulin levels steady or you can eat 3 meals a day and ensure that your carb sources are slow digesting.
5. Spice Up Your Meals- Spicy foods containing ingredients rich in capsaicin have been known to temporarily spike metabolism and increase that feeling of satiety. Cayenne pepper is a common pepper known to have high amounts of capsaicin.
6. Power Up With Protein- Your body will burn 30% of the calories found in the ingested protein to digest it as it takes longer to breakdown (unless taken in liquid form or smaller polypeptide chains). Keep in mind that protein by itself will not keep your metabolism elevated you will need to pair it with muscle building exercises.
7. Drink Black Coffee- Coffee acts as a stimulant for the nervous system. It encourages the nervous system to signal for fat release and breakdown thus increasing your metabolism.
8. Recharge With Green Tea – not a fan of coffee? Well green tea will have the same effects on your metabolism as coffee as it also contains caffeine.
9. Avoid Crash Diets- if you drastically reduce calories, you’ll lose weight but at the expense of poor nutrition. You’ll also lose muscle, therefore slowing down your metabolism. Thus, the body will burn fewer calories and when your diet is normal again, you’ll gain the weight back faster.
10. Get Some Rest – As per research done in the International journal of Endocrinology, sleep is connected to hormonal balance and metabolism. Sleep wont directly boost metabolism but it will help to keep it regulated. Losing sleep contributes to metabolism dysregulation and can cause weight gain.
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