Boost Metabolism Naturally

There are many ways to boost metabolism naturally. So before you buy those expensive pills or drink that chalking tasting shake, check out these methods to rev up your metabolism fat burning furnace.

We all know that exercise helps boost the calorie burn. But there are other methods as well. For example, did you know certain foods can help activate your metabolism?

Or just getting the proper sleep can also help. Even changes to certain habits can help boost energy and your metabolism.



Metabolism Boosting Foods

You can boost metabolims naturally by adding certain foods to your diet. By eating healthy, and selecting the right foods, you can increase the calories you burn in a day. The more calories you burn the faster you can reach your weight loss goals. Keeping your metabolism going all day will help you burn more calories during the day. So when planning your next meals, why not add some of these healthier foods and increase your metabolic rate.

Whole Grain Cereals / Oatmeal

The complex carbohydrates and high fibers in whole grain cereals help boost your metabolism naturally by slowing down the release of insulin. The lower production of insulin helps to keep your metabolism going.

When there is an increase of insulin production in the system, your body receives a signal to start storing food as fat. The metabolism must be slowed down in order for your body to store this fat and therefore you are burning fewer calories during this time.

So by eating these metabolism boosting foods, you will slow down the production of insulin and increase your metabolism. If you are counting carbs, make sure to make your carbs count for you.

Low Fat Yogurt / Skim Milk

The calcium found in dairy products has been part of many studies when it comes to weight loss. Studies show that those people who included 3 to 4 servings of dairy products in their weight loss plan lost significantly more weight than those who did not include dairy or either had a low dairy intake. In this study, both groups ate approximately the same number of calories.

Yogurt is also known to be good for your digestive system, keeping you regular and healthy.

Green Tea / Coffee

Green Tea has been advertised as one of the best weight loss foods. So why is green tea one of the best metabolism booster foods?

Green Tea has a component called Epigallo Catechin Gallate, or EGCG for short. It is this compound that is believed to be the main ingredient that helps boost your metabolism and aid in weight loss.

Additionally, both green tea and coffee has caffeine. Caffeine speeds up your heart and the faster your heart beats the faster your metabolism. It has also been shown to increase concentration.

So not only do you get the benefit of an increased metabolism, you will have greater concentration throughout the day.

Grapefruit / Oranges

Vitamin C is the secret ingredient to boost metabolism naturally from these super foods. They are said to have some fat burning quality.

Grapefruit is by far the most common vitamin C fruit to be considered a weight loss food. One research at Scripps clinic showed that participants that included ½ a grapefruit to each meal lost weight.

Although the Grapefruit Diet is considered a “fad” diet, there is some merit to the weight loss results of eating grapefruit.

Oranges also have the benefit of vitamin C giving your metabolism a boost. So start your day with one of these healthy fruits.

Jalapeno / Habanera / Cayenne

Spice it up with hot peppers. By including these hot peppers in your foods you are boosting your metabolism naturally metabolism. This is because they have a thermagenic property which heats up your body. To cool down your body requires calories, meaning an increase in your metabolism.

Not only are these spices a great metabolism booster foods, they add flavor to your recipes, so get cooking with these hot, spicy peppers.

Lean Proteins

Lean proteins like turkey, chicken, pork, beef and certain fish are a great way to boost metabolism naturally. Protein is the ingredient in these foods that rev up your metabolic rate. Protein requires more effort to digest than carbs or fat. This means your body is working harder to digest the protein in these foods and is burning more calories.

Fish fry anyone? Okay, don’t fry the fish but if prepared in a healthy way, foods such as salmon and tuna can boost metabolism naturally. They are loaded with Omega 3 fatty acids, which if you read my Weight Loss Myths you know your body cannot produce certain fats, so you must provide these essential fats through the foods you eat.

Studies have shown that Omega 3 fatty acids can alter the level of a hormone in your body called leptin.  These studies indicate that leptin can have an impact on your metabolism by determining whether or not you burn calories or store foods as fat.

Higher levels of leptin means more foods stored as fat, or a lower metabolism.  But lower levels of leptin means a higher metabolism, and fish is a great way to lower your leptin.

Vegetables

Vegetables are a great source for low calorie foods that help satisfy you and make you feel full. Veggies contain fiber, vitamins and nutrients that help keep us healthy.

Certain vegetables also are great way to boost metabolism naturally. These metabolism booster foods include Broccoli and Spinach.

Spinach contains magnesium which has been known to boost the body’s fat burning process. Other foods high in magnesium include peanut butter, tofu, whole wheat bread and my favorite, dark chocolate.

Spinach is also high in potassium which aids weight loss by keeping the body’s cells hydrated.  If your cells are not sufficiently hydrated, your metabolism will slow down.

Other potassium rich foods include bananas, honeydew and baked potatoes.

Apples / Pears

These low calorie, high fiber fruits are why these are included on the metabolism booster foods list. These fruits will give you a satisfying sweet taste and help to keep you full longer due to the lower calorie and higher fiber content than other fruits.

According to one study from the State University of Rio de Janeiro, women who included apples and pears in their low calorie diet lost more weight than the women who did not add fruit to their weight loss plan.

10 Ways to Boost Metabolism Naturally

Some of these ten ways to boost metabolism naturally may not be methods you have thought of before. Others I'm sure you have already heard about but may not have yet tried.

If you are trying to lose weight, increasing your metabolic rate is one of the best tips for losing weight.

These tips are not the common ones you can find just about anywhere. Instead, these are the less known ways to boost your metabolism.

All of these are great ways to rev up your metabolism and will help increase your basal metabolic rate.

Reduce Stress

This tip to boost metabolism naturally may be easier said than done. Reducing your stress level not only helps you rev up your metabolism, it also helps minimize many medical risks as well.

It is well known that stress can cause many medical conditions and even causes weight gain. When you are stressed, your body releases the stress hormone known as cortisol.

This stress hormone increases your appetite and also stimulates your body's release of insulin. This increased insulin can decrease your metabolism.

Of course it's easier said than done to relieve stress, but by reducing the stress in your life you can be increasing your metabolism - or at least not decreasing it.

You can try exercising to reduce stress. Stress relief is just one of the many benefits to exercise.

Get Sleep

Another tip to boost metabolism naturally that you may not be aware of is a simple good night sleep. Getting a good night's sleep is essential for your body.

As your body sleeps, it is recouping from the previous day. This is the time your body rejuvenates itself and it's different systems such as the digestive system, allowing you to digest foods more efficiently.

Sleep also helps you to feel energized and allows you to get the most out of your exercise routine.

With a good night's sleep you are more likely to be motivated to workout and can increase the duration of your exercise routine not to mention that it helps boost metabolism naturally.

Get Fidgety

Do you have a friend that is constantly bouncing their leg up and down? Or perhaps they talk with their hands or tap their fingers on the table. Is this friend one of your "skinny" friends?  

I've always called these people my "nervous" friends and yes, they are all skinning. Who would have thought being fidgety was a way to boost metabolism naturally.

Fidgeting can be key to giving you more energy and a boost to your metabolism. Fidgeting and incidental movements throughout the day are called "non-exercise activity thermogenesis" or NEAT.

Thermogenesis is the term for energy burning.  When you fidget or talk with your hands, your body assumes it has excess energy to work off so it boosts your metabolism. The less you move the more your body thinks it does not have excess energy, so in turn slows down your metabolism.

Take a Deep Breath

Oxygen is critical to our survival, which we all know.  Besides just keeping us alive, oxygen plays an important role to the function of many of our bodies systems.

Oxygen is needed for the muscles to work efficiently when we exercise.  And of course when we are exercising we are breathing more deeply.

But in addition to breathing deeply during exercise, by taking time out during the day for some simple breathing exercises, you can increase your metabolism. When you breathe deeply you are oxygenating your body. The more oxygen means the more efficiently you will burn calories; meaning a more efficient metabolism.

You should try to take time out of your day to do 5 minutes of deep breathing about 3 times a day.  Not only will it help boost metabolism naturally but this is a great way to stay relaxed and relieve stress.

Get The Calories Right

One common mistake many people make when they start a weight loss program is they take in too few calories. We've all heard that you have to reduce calories to lose weight.

So the natural direction one would think in order to lose weight fast, is to cut even more calories. While in theory, this may make sense, in actuality it's one of the biggest mistakes and the most common reason for a slow metabolism.  

You have probably read many articles on the right foods to eat and the wrong things to drink and have probably read many articles on calorie intake as well.

You may have even used a weight loss calculator or two.  So you think you've got the right foods and the right calories, but you are still not losing weight. 

Remember, calculating the proper BMR and calorie intake is not an exact science.  So, adjust your calories by increasing them slightly to see if this gets you on the losing end.

When a person gets too few calories the body slows down the metabolism and starts storing food as fat.  Even though this one may be hard to accept, sometimes the best way to lose weight is to increase your calorie intake.

Get Active

Getting active goes beyond just being fidgety. By adding structured exercise to your weekly routine, you can boost metabolism naturally. I know, there's that dreaded word again - exercise.

People who add exercise to their weight loss plan tend to lose more weight in the same period of time as those who only diet. With aerobic exercises you will be burning fat and calories and strength training will help build lean muscles.

The more lean muscles you have the higher your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is and the more calories you will burn.

Try adding a least 30 minutes of some type of activity a day. With just 30 minutes a day at least 3 or 4 times a week will have a positive impact on your metabolism. 

Not only will this rev up your metabolism naturally, you will feel more energized. If you really want to jolt your metabolism try kicking it up a notch. Try adding spurts of high intense exercises like sprinting, running or jump roping just to name a few activies.

Your metabolism can stay revved up to five times longer than with an easier workout. This form of exercise is known as interval training which not only keeps your metabolism going it builds endurance.

Eat Breakfast

This methog to boost metabolism naturally is often ignored by many who are trying to lose weight. In fact, this is one metabolism boosters tip that many people to this day still don't follow.

You know the old saying, breakfast is the most important meal. But do you know why?

Eating a good, healthy breakfast gets your metabolism started. When you skip a meal, your metabolism slows down and your body's natural defenses take over, storing fat and saving it for fuel when needed.

So, think of breakfast as one of your metabolism boosters and eat. Remember, fat loss is what you're looking for and you burn more fat when your metabolism is working.

Breakfast doesn't have to be a huge meal. You could have quick bowl of cereal or a yogurt. Perhaps just an apple or banana. Just start your day right with a healthy diet and eat breakfast.

Eat Small - Eat Often

Eat smaller meals more often. Less really can be more.  By eating smaller meals more often you will feel more satisfied during the day.

The recommendation is to eat something every 2 – 3 hours. So depending on your daily schedule, this would be 4 – 6 meals a day. Experts are now saying that eating smaller meals more often helps keep your metabolism going. 

Remember my tip on eating breakfast? Same concept here.  Think of your meals as ways to boost metabolism naturally.

Many weight loss plans will still have a typical meal plan of breakfast, lunch and dinner, but they also have times of the day for “snacks”. This, in reality, is your additional meals throughout the day.

Just remember to make these meals or snacks the right foods to continue eating healthy throughout the day.  

Protein with Every Meal

Another great metabolism boosters trick is to get lots of protein. By adding protein with every meal you are improving your lean muscle mass. The more lean muscle, the higher your BMR.

Don’t worry, I’m not saying you have to bulk up and become a body builder. Just focus on eating the right foods.

By adding protein to every meal, you are helping fuel your body with muscle. Protein can be found in a variety of foods from many of the food groups.

Red meat of course is the first thing that comes to mind. But foods like turkey or chicken, cottage cheese, fish and egg whites are another great source of protein.

Drink Water

Water and weight loss. These 2 terms are often seen together in most weight loss tips.

There is some debate amongst the experts on whether there is any real benefits to losing weight by drinking the recommended 8 – 10 glasses of water (8 oz glass).

However, most agree that people who drink this amount of water do see weight loss results. For some, this could be because they have replaced their sugary drinks with water. For others, it could be as simple as feeling full from that glass of water.

Even though there have been very few scientific studies done on the benefits of drinking water for weight loss, all the successful weight loss plans do recommend drinking water.

Find out here how else water can help with weight loss.

These simple lifestyle changes can boost metabolism naturally and help you reach your weight loss goals.

Understanding Metabolism and What Impacts It

Learning ways to boost metabolism naturally is just one piece of the puzzle. You must also understand what metabolism is and what can impact it.

Metabolism definition, as defined by Wikipedia is “the set of chemical reactions that occur in living organisms in order to maintain life.

These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce. It helps organs maintain their structure and respond to their environment.

What does all this mean?  To restate this in layman’s terms, the definition of metabolism is the rate that your body burns calories in order to sustain bodily functions.

The metabolic rate for each person is different and depends on several factors. Understanding your metabolism and what can impact, is important when trying to lose weight.

Part of understanding metabolism definition is knowing what can impact it. There are certain things that impact your metabolism which you have no control over.  These include age, gender and heredity.

Age

Once you reach the big 40, your metabolism will slow down at a rate of 5% per decade. At about the age of 40, your body produces less and less of the growth hormone.

This hormone is needed for the growing process during childhood and for adulthood to help maintain tissues and organs throughout your life.

But at around the age of 40 your body begins to reduce the amount of the growth hormone produced. Once your metabolic rate slows down due to age, you may have to adjust your eating habits by taking in fewer calories than you have in the past as well as add activity.

Try including both aerobic exercises and strength training in your weekly routine to help maintain and build lean muscles. Although this may not seem fair, it is true that men tend to have more lean muscle than women.

Lean muscle helps to rev up your metabolism.  The reason for this is that muscle is more metabolically demanding than fat.

A healthy range of body fat for women is 20% - 25% and for men the range is 10% - 15% of body fat.  A body fat percent over 30% for women or 20% for men would indicate obesity.

Genes

Your genes play a part in your metabolism as well.  Now I don’t mean the jeans you buy at the store, but the genes you got from mom and dad. Some people are born with a naturally higher or lower metabolism.

If all things were equal between two people; same gender, age, height and weight, and each ate the same amount of calories and got the same amount of exercise, one of these may actually gain weight while the other stayed the same.

This is because of the different metabolic rate. This is where hereditary comes into play. You may have a naturally slow metabolism and therefore may have to add more exercise and/or consume fewer calories.



About Author

Contact

Disclaimer

Privacy Policy

Site Map

Copyright © 2008 - 2024. All rights reserved.
Exercise 4 Weight Loss 2 Achieve Fitness and Health