23 Simple ways to increase your metabolism
This
entire article can be found on the link below in it's original
format.... I enjoyed it's no nonsense approach, and knew you guys would
love it as well....take a look
The best way to shed weight
fast and naturally (besides getting proper nutrition) is to increase
your metabolism. Having a faster metabolism is what will help you lose
pounds , burn fat, and so much more. What’s even better is that you will
be doing so consistently, quickly, and permanently! In today’s post I
hope to help you in understanding more on what exactly the metabolism
is, and also many of the most effective ways for you to naturally
increase it as high as possible! Continue reading on to learn more…
Firstly, what is the metabolism?
Well, to skip over all the medical mumble jumble, basically, your metabolism is not a specific part of your body, it’s a specific function of your body that processes food into energy. This process will either be catabolism or anabolism.
Catabolism is where your metabolism will break down foods into energy. Anabolism is where your metabolism will break down foods and store them… as extra body fat! One surefire way to become anabolic is by eating too many calories at once. When you eat a lot of calories, and your body has nothing to do with these excess calories, then your body is forced to store these excess calories… as excess fat (check out #19 below).
So, as you can see, increasing your metabolism into a catabolic state is surely the best way to weight naturally and quickly, and with that said, I have for you my top 23 ways to boost your metabolism to lose up to 25 pounds of stubborn fat lightning fast:
1. Build Muscle – The first thing I would like to mention before I explain why building lean muscle is for sure one of the best ways to shed weight fast is that if you are a woman, you do not have to worry about building HUGE muscles! For women developing massive muscles, this is only done by taking supplements, lifting extremely heavy weights, and other unnatural things.
Now, the reason it is so important to build muscle tissue is because having more muscle tissue on you than fat tissue will AUTOMATICALLY burn away calories! This happens due to an increase to your metabolism during a weight training workout, and also due to an increase of your resting metabolic rate (when your body repairs muscle tissue during rest).
2. Interval Cardiovascular Exercise – This type of aerobic workout involves alternating between high and low intensity with your exercise. An example would be to jog for 2 minutes and then kick it up a notch for 30 seconds and sprint. Repeat this for a period of 20 total minutes and not only will you have had a more fun and motivating workout, you will have also increased your metabolism AND resting metabolic rate… plus this is a great stress buster!
3. Eat More Frequently – I’m pretty sure you’ve heard this dieting tip at one point or another… and I HIGHLY recommend you follow it. When you eat more frequently (such as with 4-6 meals), you are keeping your digestive system active… and will therefore increase your metabolism. You also help defeat annoying hunger and craving pangs!
4. Get Omega Fatty Acids In Your Diet – Omega fatty acids (and other healthy fats such as monounsaturated) are found in nuts, fish, fish oil supplements, olive oil, and more. Getting healthy fats in your diet will increase your metabolism since it will help with regulating your blood sugar levels, decreasing your susceptibility to leptin, and reducing inflammation.
5. The MIGHTY Green Tea – Drinking at least a couple of cups (I recommend five or more for SUPER results) of green tea everyday will increase your metabolism and is also a great source for antioxidants to help cleanse your body and help you shed weight fast. Drinking green tea will help boost your metabolism due to an active ingredient found in green tea called catechins.
6. NEVER Force Your Body To PRESERVE Energy – What does that mean? Well, if you go on one of those infamous “low-calorie” diets or even those insane starvation (fasting) diets, you can end up slowing your metabolism down. This happens because when you significantly reduce calories, your body thinks you are starving, and will then slow down fat loss to maintain your energy levels! To prevent this from happening, first avoid those “low-calorie” types of diets, and second, I recommend that you eat more than 3 meals a day (mentioned in #3 above)… BUT… make sure that each meal is small (such as around 300 calories).
7. START Right… And You’ll FINISH Strong – Yes, the VERY common tip of ensuring that you eat a well-balanced breakfast has been beaten to death… but it still deserves to be mentioned again, and again, and again! Eating a “smart” breakfast (foods high in protein and complex carbs) will not just help you with sustained energy all day long, it will also help increase your metabolism.
8. Keep Away From Trans Fat – This is the most important type of fat to avoid by all means necessary. The health damaging effects of trans fat is flat-out scary! One of the problems eating foods high in trans fat can cause is a reduction in your metabolism. It does this by making your body insulin resistant, causing inflammation, and adhering to liver and fat cells.
9. Eat As Fresh As Possible
10. Protein – Healthy protein (turkey breast, chicken breast, egg whites, nuts, organic fat-free milk, organic fat-free yogurt, whey protein shakes, and more) is not just a popular nutrient amongst bodybuilders, it is a vital nutrient that can help you in so many ways… such as by SKYROCKETING your metabolism! The reason protein can help increase your metabolism is because your body has to burn a ton of calories just to process it! Not to mention, getting plenty of protein in your diet will fight off hunger pangs and so much more! Also, I recommend that you have some type of healthy protein with every meal for best results.
11. Avoid So-Called “Healthy” Foods – Many of those low-fat, low-carb, etc. food options you see at your local grocery store are actually not healthy for you. The reason why is because with reducing one bad part of a particular type of food, more than likely another bad area was increased to substitute (such as more sugar, more fat, aspartame, etc.).
12. Go Green – Dark green leafy veggies (spinach, dark green leafy lettuce such as romaine, broccoli, kale, collard greens, and more) can help increase your metabolism since they will enhance your digestive system and also because they are high in iron. Another benefit of dark green leafy veggies is that they will also support your red blood cells to supply nutrients throughout your body.
13. Detoxify Your Body – Processed foods, tap water, and even the air we breathe all contain contaminants that over time, will accumulate in our bodies in the form of toxins… better known as free radicals. This waste can not only be harmful for your overall health, it can cause pounds of excess waste to accumulate. If you detoxify your body (drinking more water, eating fiber, eating foods such as berries or drinking liquids such as green tea that are high in antioxidants, etc.), you can help speed up your metabolism, improve your overall health… and so much more.
14. Grapefruit – Eating this super-food can help boost your metabolic rate by helping to decrease insulin levels.
15. The Number One Essential – Water! You can increase your metabolic rate by up to 30% by drinking more water. A good rule of thumb to help you figure out how much you need to drink is to simply divide the weight you are currently at now, and drink this amount in ounces of FRESH filtered water each day. I recommend you don’t waste your money on buying spring water. You can get similar quality water and SAVE A TON of money by simply getting a water filtration device for your faucet instead.
16. THIS Each Day Keeps The Doctor Away – That’s right… good ol’ apples! Apples are by far one of the greatest super-foods on the planet. Eating them will help in improving your metabolism, decreasing hunger pangs, decreasing cravings, SIGNIFICANTLY helping your digestive system, and more! Now, although this is a VERY powerful and VERY healthy food, given that it is somewhat high in calories and simple carbs, I recommend that you get a minimum amount each day (such as 1 or 2).
17. Berries – Adding berries (blue, black, etc.) to your diet will help detoxify your body, increase your fat burning abilities, and improve your overall health.
18. Make It SPICY! – Many researches have indicated that adding hot spices to your foods can significantly help raise your bodies fat burning ability. This is because many spices (such as cayenne pepper, jalapeño peppers, and more) contain Capsaicin, and this will help in increasing your bodies fat burning hormones.
19. Avoid Eating Too Late At Night – Especially foods high in bad carbs (sugar, white flour based, etc.) and fatty foods. Eating foods too late at night is a problem because when you sleep, your body doesn’t need energy… and food is used as energy. So what happens to this food when it’s not being used as energy? That’s right, your metabolism slows down and stores it as extra body fat!
20. You Cheater! – If you want to trick your metabolism into increasing as high as possible, and if you want to actually enjoy dieting instead of dreading it, then one awesome thing you can do is to have cheat foods… THE RIGHT WAY. Yes, there is a right and wrong way with cheat days. Most people think that it’s okay to go absolutely insane on their cheat days and this is further from the truth. You have to eat the right types of foods in the right patterns for this to work properly and not end up sabotaging your metabolism instead of strategically elevating it.
21. Deep Breathing – Your metabolism requires oxygen… so doing deep breathing exercises will definitely help in increasing the health of your metabolism. Also, this is one surefire way to help decrease your stress levels as well.
22. Getting Good Quality Sleep – If you sleep straight for at least 7-8 hours EVERY night, you can help improve many areas of your life (energy, brain functions, and in this case… your metabolism).
23. Reduce Stress – Lowering the stress in your life can have a huge impact on your body’s ability to efficiently burn off fat. This is because too much stress can:
A. Cause the chemical cortisol to release in your body… and too much of it will be stored as extra body fat.
B. Affect your bodies metabolism from working effectively.
Some things you can do to relieve stress are exercising, deep breathing exercises (such as what I mentioned above), meditation, fun activities, hobbies, decreasing caffeine consumption, eating fresher foods, not driving during rush hour, and just simply LAUGHING!).
In Conclusion…Without a doubt, the best way to shed weight quickly, burn fat fast, and improve your overall health is to ensure that you NATURALLY boost your metabolism. If you follow those proven tips above, then you will be well on your way to the body of your dreams
I loved this article so much I wanted to share it with you in it's entirety (even though there are a few things that wouldn't work for ie.green tea etc.) ...I really hope you can take at least one new healthy habit to increase your metabolism and work on it....
These 10 powerful spices help to control blood sugar, reduce inflammation, boost your metabolism, aid fat loss, and reduce your risk of cancer and heart disease.
Every time you flavor your meals with herbs or spices you are supercharging your food without adding a single calorie. You can transform something ordinary and bland into something truly extraordinary tasting and good for your body, just by generously adding herbs and spices to your meals.
Did you know that certain herbs and spices contain a wide variety of some of the most potent antioxidants of any food? In fact, many herbs and spices rank even higher in antioxidant activity than many fruits and vegetables, with some spices such as cloves, turmeric, and cinnamon having as much as 10-50x more antioxidants measured by ORAC value (on a weight to weight comparison) compared to blueberries.
The benefits of the antioxidants in spices include some very powerful protection against many serious diseases like cancer, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, macular degeneration, Alzheimer’s, and overall aging.
Herbs and spices add tons of extra flavor, and when combined with the nutrition in other foods, they actually exponentially boost the natural antioxidants, phytonutrients, and anti-inflammatory power of the food.
Besides the super antioxidants, herbs and spices can also:
- Aid Fat Burning and Boost Metabolism - many herbs and spices are thermogenic, which means they naturally help to increase metabolism, partly because they are so nutrient-dense.
- Help Stabilize Blood Sugar - Some spices are also good at regulating blood sugar and controlling insulin--even as good as some diabetic drugs! When your blood sugar is well controlled, you are more likely to burn fat and not store calories as excess weight.
- Powerful Anti-Inflammatory Properties –Scientific studies show that herbs and spices can actually work as well or better than some medications at calming inflammation without the negative side effects of isolated drugs.
- Anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-fungal - Many herbs and spices contain properties that effectively kill dangerous pathogens like viruses, bacteria and stubborn fungi. The natural properties in these foods work against many microbes that are resistant to conventional medications.
1. Basil - Basil is a very effective anti-inflammatory herb with extraordinary healing benefits that work for arthritis, allergies, and inflammatory bowel conditions, to name a just a few. In addition, basil helps kill harmful bacteria that cause food poisoning including: Listeria, Staph, and E. coli O:157:H7.
Basil is also an excellent source of beta carotene, a powerful antioxidant that prevents free radical damage. Free radical damage is the primary cause of heart disease, cancer, and many other serious health conditions, as well as aging. Because of its dark green color, it is an excellent source of vitamin K, calcium and magnesium, which is good for the bones. It is also a great source of iron, manganese, vitamin C and potassium. Use both fresh basil and dried basil generously in your foods to maximize it's benefits.
2. Cinnamon - This ancient spice has one of the highest antioxidant levels of any spice.
Cinnamon is highly effective at helping to stabilize blood sugar levels, making it very effective for those with diabetes (type 1 and type 2). In one study of people with type 2 diabetes, just two teaspoons a day reduced blood sugar as much as 20-30%, as well as lowering LDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Cinnamon also has powerful anti-inflammatory properties, and helps relieve pain and stiffness in muscles and joints, including arthritis. Cinnamon has a positive effect on brain function, and smelling cinnamon, or chewing cinnamon flavored gum, can possibly help improve memory and attention. Cinnamon also reduces inflammation in blood vessels that leads to atherosclerosis and heart disease, as well as having antifungal and antibacterial properties.
You can read another article we have here about how cinnamon can even help control belly fat in an indirect way.
Try cinnamon in your smoothies, yogurt, healthy baking recipes, oatmeal, mixed with berries, or as a healthy addition in your coffee or tea.
3. Cayenne - This hot spice not only heats up your dishes, it heats up your body and raises your metabolism, helping you burn fat faster. And an interesting research study showed that when a person consumed an appetizer with red pepper flakes, they ate 15% less food. And for those of you who avoid cayenne because you think it bothers your stomach, cayenne pepper is actually healing to stomach tissues, it stimulates digestive enzymes, and helps prevent stomach ulcers.
Cayenne reduces LDL blood cholesterol, triglyceride levels, and decreases the formation of harmful blood clots, all of which prevent heart attacks and strokes. And, cayenne is a very effective anti-inflammatory and pain remedy for everything from headaches to arthritis and sore muscles, as well as clearing nasal congestion and boosting immunity.
Try cayenne in your morning eggs, in soups, stews, chili, or meatloaf for a little metabolism boosting spice!
4. Cloves - Cloves have a unique sweet and spicy flavor, but also contain powerful natural medicine. Cloves have strong antiseptic and germicidal ingredients that help fight infections, relieve digestive problems, and arthritis pain. One of cloves’ best known uses is its ability to relieve tooth and gum pain. Cloves have been measured as having THE highest antioxidant level (ORAC value) of all spices and herbs.
The oil in cloves kills bacteria and is very effective when applied to scrapes, cuts, fungal infections, itchy rashes, bites, burns, or bruises. Cloves also help digestive problems like gas, indigestion, nausea and vomiting, and eliminate harmful parasites, bacteria and fungus in the digestive system. And the smell of cloves helps to encourage mental creativity too.
Cloves can be a great healthy addition to hot teas.
5. Cumin - Cumin is another spice that is especially high in antioxidants, but cumin is known for being especially good for digestion. It stimulates the gallbladder and pancreas to secrete enzymes and bile that break down food into usable nutrients your body can use. Cumin also helps detoxify the body, and is highly effective for respiratory disorders like asthma and bronchitis.
Cumin, like cinnamon, helps keep blood sugar levels stable, which means cumin is great for diabetics or pre-diabetics, and it means less chance of weight gain and excess body fat. Cumin has been proven to work as well as some commonly used diabetic drugs at regulating insulin and glycogen. Cumin is also a very good source of iron, vitamin C and vitamin A, which benefit the immune system. Cumin goes great in chili!
6. Turmeric - Turmeric’s yellow-orange pigment, curcumin, is the main active ingredient in this super spice. Curcumin’s anti-inflammatory benefits are actually comparable to drugs like hydrocortisone and over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medicines like Advil and Motrin. But, unlike the drugs, curcumin is not toxic at all.
Curcumin is more effective slowing down the development of Alzheimer’s disease than many medications, because it decreases inflammation and oxidation in the brain. This spice also speeds up the recovery time from strokes as well. Turmeric and its active ingredient, curcumin, are also highly effective against diseases like irritable bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s, and arthritis. Turmeric also improves liver function, lowers homocysteine and prevents heart disease.
Most importantly, turmeric is one of the most potent anti-cancer spices that helps protect you. Turmeric and it's derivatives are currently being studied in alternative cancer treatments.
7. Rosemary - Rosemary contains active ingredients that are potent antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory agents. Rosemary has long been known to improve concentration, boost memory, and lift depression. Rosemary also strengthens the immune system, improves circulation, stimulates digestion, and fights cancer, as well.
Rosemary is highly effective for respiratory problems including asthma, chest congestion, and respiratory infections. While rosemary adds a delicious savory flavor to meat dishes, it also helps digestion by stimulating the gallbladder to release bile as well. Rosemary will protect your body against harmful carcinogenic toxins and prevents colon cancer, stomach, breast, and lung cancer.
Fun fact: If you're going to grill meats, marinating meats for hours beforehand in liquid mixtures that contain rosemary and other herbs/spices can dramatically help to reduce HCA's (heterocyclic amines), which are carcinogenic compounds that can form when meats are grilled. So using rosemary, thyme, garlic, oregano and other spices in a meat marinade before grilling meats can drastically reduce any carcinogens that normally would form on grilled meat.
The antioxidants in rosemary and thyme from a marinade were specifically cited in studies at being powerful inhibitors of HCA formation when grilling meats. But it was also noted that other spices such as garlic, oregano, and others can help to prevent HCA formation as well, so I suggest using a variety, which tastes great anyway!
One more important point about grilling meat: Remember that the more well-done a meat is cooked, the higher concentration of carcinogenic HCA's can form, so rare, medium-rare, or medium are healthier choices than well-done. I've never understood why anybody would want to ruin a good steak by burning it to oblivion anyway. But hey, if you're one of those folks that likes your steaks well-done, just remember that you're eating a lot more carcinogens than a steak that's cooked less, so make sure to load up on your antioxidants (spices, teas, berries, etc) to help combat those extra carcinogens.
Washing down your barbequed meal with a glass of unsweetened iced tea (rich in antioxidants) and also a good salad with lots of raw veggies can provide the antioxidants needed to counteract the effect of HCAs in your body from grilled meat.
By the way, even charring vegetables on the grill creates different carcinogens such as acrylamides, so don't think that the negative effect of charring only applies to meats.
8. Ginger - Ginger is VERY powerful for your health! Ginger contains over 25 different antioxidants, which makes it extremely effective at fighting free radicals in many different body systems. Ginger is best known for its ability to reduce nausea and vomiting, as well as motion sickness. In fact, ginger may even be more effective than Dramamine, one of the most common drugs used for motion sickness. And because ginger does not have harmful side effects like many drugs, it is very good for nausea from pregnancy. Studies actually show that just 1 gram of ginger before surgery is more effective than the standard anti-nausea medication given for post surgical nausea and vomiting.
Ginger is also a soothing remedy for sore throats from colds and flu because of its antiviral properties. Ginger also helps coughs and is an effective expectorant. Try a tea made with hot water simmered with a few slices of ginger and a small amount of honey and lemon for a soothing tonic when you are sick.
Because ginger is such a strong anti-inflammatory, it helps reduce the pain and swelling of arthritis, and muscle aches. Ginger also fights cancer, reduces cholesterol, and prevents blood clots that lead to strokes or heart disease. I like to use a slice of ginger root in my hot teas sometimes, in our batches of iced teas, and of course, I love piling ginger on top of sushi! I take a couple capsules of ginger daily since it's not as frequently used in dishes as some other spices.
9. Oregano - This herb contains an oil that is a very potent anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral agent, rosmarinic acid (also found in rosemary). Oregano oil has been used to treat a wide range of conditions from bacterial and viral infections, to parasites and stubborn fungal infections. Although the oil of oregano is most often used for medicinal purposes, the herb itself can provide many of the same benefits when consumed regularly.
Oregano also relieves inflammation, internal or external, and can offer relief from allergies, aches and pain, without side effects. Oregano is very high on the ORAC scale of measured antioxidant value.
10. Thyme — Thyme’s active ingredient is known for treating bronchitis, sore throats, chest congestion, laryngitis and asthma. Thyme is so effective it is often an ingredient in cough drops and mouthwashes to treat inflammation and infections. Thyme is also effective as a soothing stomach aid to relieve gastritis, indigestion and colic.
Thyme helps prevent cancer, improve memory, treat Alzheimer’s, calm the nerves, and alleviate depression, nightmares, and insomnia. An interesting new discovery about thyme shows that it actually boosts the amount of DHA (an important ingredient in omega 3 fatty acids) in the brain, heart and kidney cells.
Here are some other health benefits of some of the most popular herbs and spices:
• Rosemary, turmeric, ginger and basil are powerful anti-inflammatories.
• Cumin, turmeric, and sage help fight dementia.
• Cayenne, cumin, coriander and cinnamon help to regulate insulin and blood sugar, aiding fat loss.
• Lemon grass, nutmeg, bay leaves and saffron have a calming effect.
• Garlic, mustard seed, hawthorne, and chicory are excellent for the heart.
• Basil and thyme help your skin become softer and smoother.
• Turmeric, garlic, basil, cinnamon, thyme, saffron, garlic and ginger boost the immune system.
• Coriander, rosemary, cayenne, allspice and black pepper can help banish depression.
There are 3 specific spices that I personally believe are so powerful that I try to take them in daily capsule form as well, since they may not always be used in my daily meals... and those are:
Turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. They're very cheap in capsule form too. I usually take 2 capsules per day of each of these spices unless I use large amounts in certain dishes like a curry dish for example.
Spice up your life a bit, and enjoy all of those super health benefits!
Note: Always check with your physician to be sure certain herbs and spices don’t interfere with medications you may be taking—and check with your doctor before you quit any current medications
8 TOP TIPS TO BURN MORE FAT AND BOOST YOUR METABOLISM
Some people are really lucky and have high metabolisms. This means their bodies are super efficient at burning calories. Having a fast or slow metabolism is something that can be genetic. If you're not blessed with having a naturally super fast metabolism, there is some good news! There are tactics you can employ to speed it up. Boosting your metabolism will help you burn more calories throughout the day and shed fat quicker. At Dynamic, our classes and Body Transform Challenges aim to get your metabolism on super drive with the following techniques.
1. High Intensity Training
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a great way to boost your metabolism. The best thing about this type of training is that not only do you burn heaps of calories during the session, but you keep burning calories for hours on end after the workout is over. This is a phenomenon known as the afterburn effect.That’s why it’s such a powerful way to train for your metabolism. It’s all about training smarter and getting your body to burn as much as it can for as long as it can.
2. Strength Training
The best way to build lean muscle is to do strength training. Muscle burns fat and therefore the more muscle you have the better your metabolism will work. You don't need to look like a bodybuilder to have a good metabolism. Girls can build long lean muscle that will be just as effective for burning calories. Our HIT and SHIOC classes incorporate weight training for this reason.
3. Don’t Under Eat
Never ever under eat. This will only cause your metabolism to slow down and hold onto body fat, or worse store more. If you have previously been on a very low calorie diet then it is likely your body shed muscle tissue and held onto it's body fat changing your body composition for the worse and reducing your metabolism. You may have even experienced the Yo-Yo syndrome where every time you crash dieted and then went back to your regular eating habits, you ended up weighing more then before you started.In my Body Transform Challenges, people are often shocked that they are eating more than they ever have, yet are actually losing weight. If you are stuck in a cycle of Yo-Yo dieting, please contact me for advice.
4. Eat Regularly
I recommend small meals five times a day (and sometimes more depending on your specific needs), 3 to 4 hours apart. That’s because eating regularly and small amounts helps keep your metabolism going. A lot of people when dieting will skip meals in the hope that this will help them lose weight. However when you skip a meal meaning you're going for many hours before your next food intake, your metabolism slows down burning far fewer calories in those lengthy hours without food, then if you'd simply eaten the snack or meal. If you keep this up, going hungry for lengthy periods of time, eventually starvation mode kicks in and when it does, the urge to eat anything and everything in an uncontrollable manner (binge eating) is likely. When in the midst of a binge, it is almost impossible to stop and your food choices are likely to be bad ones. To add insult to injury, your body will try to store as much of this food as fat as possible, to protect itself in the event of another 'famine'.5. Always Eat Breakfast
Too many people skip breakfast because they run out of time or just don’t like eating in the mornings. However breakfast is essential to jump-start your metabolism after you have been fasting all night. If you don’t feel like a big meal, make a smoothie with a little fruit, frozen berries, and protein powder. Even just something small will help kick start your metabolism for the day.7. Get Your Sleep
Sleep is so important to overall health, not only does a poor nights sleep affect your mood and productivity the next day, it also affects your metabolism. Studies show that people who get poor sleep struggle to regulate their blood sugar levels. This can lead to feeling hungrier, especially for carbohydrate foods, which leads to weight gain.8. Reduce Stress
Every time you have a stressful day, your brain instructs the release potent hormones. You get a burst of adrenaline, which taps stored energy so you can fight or flee. At the same time, you get a surge of cortisol, which tells your body to replenish that energy even though you haven't used very many calories. This can make you hungry...very hungry. And your body keeps on pumping out that cortisol as long as the stress continues.
But few of us reach for carrots in these situations. "Instead, we crave sweet, salty, and high-fat foods because they stimulate the brain to release pleasure chemicals that reduce tension," explains Elissa Epel, PhD, a researcher on stress eating at the University of California, San Francisco. This soothing effect becomes addicting, so every time you're anxious, you want fattening foods.
With your adrenal glands pumping out cortisol, production of the muscle-building hormone testosterone slows down. "Over time, this drop causes a decrease in your muscle mass, so you burn fewer calories," explains Shawn Talbott, PhD, author of The Cortisol Connection. "This occurs naturally as you age, but high cortisol levels accelerate the process." Cortisol also encourages your body to store fat—especially visceral fat, which is particularly dangerous because it surrounds vital organs and releases fatty acids into your blood, raising cholesterol and insulin levels and paving the way for heart disease and diabetes.
Taking steps necessary to get stress under control will also help you to keep your weight under control.
Boost Your Metabolism?
Ready?
1) Eat Pineapple. Yes, pineapple does contain bromelain, which might have some use in reducing inflammation associated with arthritis and asthma, but the evidence for it helping digestion is very weak. (Link) I found it interesting that even the people at Dole did not tout pineapple for its digestive properties, and you think they would being trying to use every selling point they could get. (Link) Also, you will notice that there is nothing in this little paragraph that implies that you will burn more calories by eating pineapple anyway. If you decide you want to eat pineapple for the vitamin C and other healthy attributes, just try to stick with fresh and avoid the dried and canned versions as they often have sugar added. And keep in mind the 83 calories and 19 grams of net carbs per cup of chunks.
2) Eat Organic. Once again, if you are looking for any good evidence from human studies, you are out of luck here. There are apparently some researchers that are looking at a possible role of industrial pollutants in obesity but there just aren't any good human studies out there. And think about it, if you go into a store like Whole Foods and buy the organic potato chips or the organic sugar you are going to get the same calories. There are other benefits to choosing local organic foods as far as a better taste (in my opinion), putting money back into the local economy, maybe even getting animal protein that has a healthier fat profile, etc, but when it comes to reducing your caloric intake or helping you burn more calories the evidence isn't there.
3) Get It On. You probably thought you were going to learn that you burned a lot of calories during sex weren't you? Well, you are out of luck here too, as what you got was some vague notion about elevating your sex hormones and your metabolism. First of all, for women, if you could actually significantly elevate your estrogen levels through sex that could actually be a bad thing as you are putting yourself at more risk for breast and ovarian cancers, but fortunately sexual frequency does not seem to be linked to cancer of the breast or ovaries. (Whew!). For men, if your testosterone is low you will likely have a harder time losing fat and gaining muscle, but you're not going to feel like having sex anyway. What you want to do is talk to a good endocrinologist about testosterone replacement therapy and start improving your diet to lose body fat; then you might actually want to get it on. And as far as calories burned--the pace of sexual activity is so varied among individuals that it is hard to pin down a number. You might burn 86-100 calories in an hour of foreplay, but then you eat one piece of bread and you've just cancelled that out. There are plenty of other reasons to enjoy sex, it being a basic human need as one of them; but you might want to use a healthy sex life as a reason to improve your diet, your exercise, quit smoking, etc. A healthier daily lifestyle can result in better sex.
4) Meditate. There
have been a very few studies conducted on Buddhist monks who appeared
to have been able to increase or decrease their metabolism via
meditation (Link). I happen to think that’s interesting, but what does that say about the rest of us? First
of all, I wouldn’t want to compare my own attempts at mediation to
someone who essentially does that for a living, and second of all you
can’t take three people and extrapolate the results to an entire
population. If you a person
that goes after high caloric food when you are under stress and you need
an alternative to eating your weight in doughnuts, and meditation
helps, then by all means use it to decrease the impact of stress on your
life. But once again, I
recognize that the meditation is a tool to help you decrease your
caloric intake and not depend on it to burn more calories.
5) Sip Green Tea. There
are a very limited amount of studies that indicate that there is
something to the claim about green tea increasing the metabolism (Link). The
downside, however, is that you are going to have to do more than sip
the green tea; you will have to drink about three to five cups per day. And even after you consume that amount you will maybe burn off an extra 80 calories per day. Every little bit helps when you
are trying to lose weight, but keep in mind that about one smaller
sized chocolate chip cookie will undo those 3-5 cups of green tea.
6) Take a Cold Shower. Sounds like a good idea since your muscles are actually doing work by contracting to make you shiver. There
is an estimate that you might burn up to 400 more calories per hour if
you are EXERCISING in the cold, but that’s cross country skiing, not
standing under the shower head. You probably don’t want to stand under the shower for an hour as you will have wasted a lot of water besides being miserable. Keep
in mind also that if you have a substantial fat layer that you are
trying to lose; it is going to take you longer to start shivering when
you are exercising because you are insulated against the cold. As always, if you do choose to exercise in the cold, take precautions not to get hypothermia.
7) Limit Cocktails. Since
one cocktail may cause you to intake 150-250 calories depending on the
type and size of the glass, this is good advice for keeping your caloric
intake under control. Alcohol
can act like an appetite stimulant, and if your judgment is impaired on
top of that, you can wind up taking in way more calories at the meal
than you intended. But does it actually slow your metabolism? Not in the way you think it does. Let’s
say that you’re trying to lose body fat and you have reduced your
caloric intake and also limited your carbohydrate intake so your body
does not have blood glucose readily available to be used as fuel. Your body will be more likely to use the fat for fuel. If you take in alcohol, your body will use that for fuel and you may not use your fat for fuel in the next several hours. So
if you are a chronic user of alcohol you might have trouble losing fat
and building muscle over time, but the problem is not because your
overall ability to burn calories is slower.
8) Sniff peppermint or citrus. There
is a very small amount of evidence that peppermint oil may help reduce
cramping and diarrhea in people with irritable bowel syndrome, but no
evidence that drinking peppermint tea or sniff the essential oils will
actually help you burn more calories. Perhaps flavoring your water with peppermint or citrus will keep you away from high caloric sodas and fake fruit drinks though.
9) Drink Cold Water. According
to a small study done in Germany a couple years ago, if you drink at
least six cups of cold water per day you will burn more calories—a whole
whopping 50 calories per day. (Link) Once
again, every little bit helps, but when you think about how about
eating half a slice of bread can undo that, it really doesn’t make much
of a difference in my book. If
you prefer your water cold and it helps you drink more, by all means go
ahead, but you still better be careful with how much you are taking in.
10) Spice it Up. There
was a very small study done by Purdue University that showed that you
may have a slight increase in metabolism after eating a spicy meal (Link). But,
as I’ve mentioned several times before, the effect is so little that it
can easily be undone by eating what seems to be a small amount of food. The
other problem is that the increase in metabolism only seemed to happen
in people who weren’t used to eating spicy food, so it appears that if
you made a habit of eating spicy food you wouldn’t get that effect after
a while. This shouldn’t stop
you from spicing thing up though—if you are already restricting your
caloric intake you want to make sure that what you are eating actually tastes good and you will stay on your plan better if you have more variety. So add those different spices to help you stay on the plan.
11) Take a stand at work. If
you are more active, you will burn more calories, so there is actually
something good that is finally coming out of this list. But
as I have said before, you are very likely not going to burn enough
calories to compensate for any high caloric snacks you might be eating
at work. Be more active at work or wherever you can, but watch what you are taking in too.
12) Have a Cup of Joe. See what I said about drinking green tea as I know I am sounding like a broken record. Sure, you may burn a few more calories, but not much to make a difference. And
if your caffeine source is a high calorie drink from Starbuck’s, or is a
sugary soda, or comes from an energy drink, chances are the benefits of
the caffeine was cancelled out by all the other calories you just had. Some
people may have trouble with their blood pressure or with their mood
after too much caffeine, so you have to weigh that risk too. If you still want to enjoy the coffee, minimize the caloric add-ons from milk/milk substitutes and sugar.
13) Breathe. Let me preface this explanation by stating that I read a lot of detective and science fiction/fantasy novels. If
you were kidnapped and trapped in an underground bunker with no
supplemental oxygen, your respiratory rate would naturally slow and you
would start burning fewer calories so that you would be more likely to
survive long enough for your favorite hero or heroine to rescue you. Once you were rescued and able to “breathe the air” again your metabolism would return to normal as you took in more air. For the rest us who do not have such exciting lives, however, breathing deeper will not increase your metabolism. If
you do deep breathing exercises like you might do meditation, to
relieve/handle stress, you might be able to cope without eating high
calorie foods, however.
14) Laugh. Yes, you will burn calories by laughing, a whole 1 calorie per minute per a study done at Vanderbilt University (Link). So
if you were sitting listening to a comedian that actually kept you
laughing for a straight 60 minutes, you could burn off about a half a
slice of bread again. See my above advice regarding stress relief.
15) Drizzle extra virgin olive oil. First
of all, there is no evidence to support that somehow eating something
that contains 100 calories per tablespoon will actually help you burn
more calories, period. I did
try to follow the convoluted path that someone’s brain must have taken
to come up with this, and all I can figure out is that someone thought
that since olive oil was metabolized (i.e. processed) differently than
animal fats in the body it must somehow cause you to burn more calories. But my mind fortunately does not take the same convoluted path. Olive
oil does not raise bad cholesterol, and having enough fat at a meal can
satisfy your hunger sooner so you consume fewer calories, but you don’t
actually burn more calories.
16) Get more sunshine. Sunshine
does help us make vitamin D which is essential for bone health, and low
levels have also been associated with insulin resistance and
depression. There also seems to
be a link between obesity and low vitamin D levels, but there isn’t any
evidence that supplementing with vitamin D or getting more sunshine
actually raises the body’s ability to burn calories. Some
people report less hunger when their vitamin D levels improve, but once
again, their weight loss is likely from a caloric deficit, not from an
increased metabolism.
Take home message—You have probably
already figured it out, the only proven way to increase your body’s
ability to burn calories is to exercise. And fat loss only comes with making major changes in your caloric intake, especially if you are overeating on carbohydrate.
How to quickly increase my metabolism
AprSaturday,
These
days where the pressure to have a tone body is tense, thousands of
people will give anything to increase their metabolism. The metabolism
is the rate at which your body can burn up energy and fat. The faster
your metabolism is, the faster you will reach your goal weight.There are numerous things that can affect how fast or how slow your metabolism rate is. The amount of muscle tissue you have, genetic, stress levels and the frequency of the meals you eat are just a few things that can affect your metabolism. Your metabolism can slow down due to a decrease in physical activity and an increase in your weight.
Here are a few tips to fire up metabolism:
1. As you get older, naturally your metabolism rate will decrease. It is apart of aging. That’s why it is important to build up on body mass. The more muscle a person has the more faster they are able to burn calories and get rid of the extra fat. You can build muscle by doing strength and resistance exercises. At least two days a week you can workout by lifting weights, in between those workouts you can do other exercises. You can walk, climb stairs and look for ways to be more active throughout the day.
2. You have to eat breakfast! So many people skip breakfast, not knowing that it is actually the most important meal of the day. Breakfast is what gets your metabolism up and running.
3. Eat less sugary foods. Sugar is what helps the body to store fat. Actually you should be eating foods that sustain an healthy level of blood sugar. If you are a person that likes to eat sweets you can find treats that are low in sugar or sugarless at all. So instead of eating a regular bowl of ice cream at night you can eat some sugar free ice-cream.
4. Eat spicy foods. Spicy foods help increase your metabolism.
5. According to studies people who don’t get a good night’s rest gain weight easily. Sleep helps regenerate your muscles getting them ready for the next day. So make sure you get enough sleep.
6. Drink more water. This is something we have heard every since we were children. Water actually flushes out toxins that are produced when our body burns fat. In order to keep our bodily functions working well we need water. A lack of water can slow down our bodily operations.
7. Eat smaller meals throughout the day. Many experts advise to eat 4 to 6 small meals about 2-3 hours apart. This definitely speeds of your metabolism. You lose weight faster and never get hungry.
8. Do not skip meals. Many people think that skipping meals will help them lose weight. This is a big misconception. Skipping meals actually slows down your metabolism.
9. Plan all your meal. Planning your meals will help you avoid eating fast food and unhealthy food. Make sure you go grocery shopping for all your planned meals in advance.
10. Beat stress. It’s so easy to become stressed out these days but we must find ways to combat it. Stress can decrease your metabolism rate big time.
11. Drink lots of green tea. Green tea can give you energy and can boost your metabolism.
12. Take in more energy foods.
These are simple, quick ways you can easily boost your metabolism.
5 FAT-BURNING FOODS TO BOOST YOUR METABOLISM
17:00
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5 FAT-BURNING FOODS TO BOOST YOUR METABOLISMBY MERCEDES CARHUAYO
Genetics, schmanetics! Yes, it may be true that your genetics contribute to your metabolism’s performance, but you can give your metabolism a boost by
simply eating the right foods! Here's the scoop on which foods you
should include in your daily diet to get your fat-burning gears in
motion. Stay on track and you'll have your six-pack abs peaking through in no time.
Brown
rice is a whole grain rice; whole grains take more effort to break down
than processed grains and therefore help your body burn more fat. Brown
rice, unlike white rice, maintains the hull and bran, which provide
“natural wholeness” to the grain. It's also rich in proteins, thiamine,
calcium, magnesium, fiber, and potassium.
Egg
whites are high in protein, low in calories, and have no cholesterol or
fat. Egg whites are rich in branched-chain amino acids which keeps your
metabolism stoked. They also provide riboflavin -- also known as
vitamin B-2 -- which can help metabolize carbohydrates, fats and
protein.
Chicken
is a lean meat; lean meats are full of iron. Eating about three to four
servings of iron-filled foods will help avoid an iron deficiency, which
can cause your metabolism to slow down. Chicken has little fat and a
lot of protein. If you are trying to add bulk to your muscles, grilled
chicken can help! Stressed? Eat chicken! Chicken contains vitamin B5,
which has a calming effect on the nerves.
“Chili peppers contain capsaicin, a chemical compound that can kick metabolism into higher gear,” says Scott Isaacs MD, clinical instructor of medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine. Capsaicin
also helps minimize blood glucose and cholesterol levels, lowers high
blood pressure, and triggers the release of endorphins and serotonin,
brain chemicals that counteract depression and mood swings. If that
wasn’t enough, peppers can also aid in curbing your appetite, reduce
your unhealthy cravings, and even enhance your sexual performance. To
reap the aforementioned mentioned benefits, Dr. Isaacs suggests adding a
tablespoon of chopped chili peppers to a meal once a day.
Lastly, don't forget to remain hydrated!
A study published by the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and
Metabolism showed that the consumption of water (about 17 oz.) can
increase the metabolic rate by 30 percent in healthy men and women.
Drinking a healthy amount of water helps the body’s fluid balance, which
in turn can aid in digestion and the transportation of nutrients in the
body. Further, drinking water can help you finish that last rep. When
you sweat at the gym, you lose water. When your muscles don’t have
enough water, they get tired. Hydrate your muscles properly, and you’ll
have extra energy to complete your workout.
10 Tips to Boost Metabolism and Weight Loss
Metabolism is basically the rate at which your body burns calories. Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the number of calories you'd burn if you did nothing all day (or the amount of calories your body needs to maintain itself in a resting state). You will use your BMR and daily activity level (including exercise) to set your daily calorie needs for weight loss or maintenance.
Here are 11 Metabolism Boosting Tips
See: It Is Your Metabolism
1. Your metabolism will slow down as you age, especially starting at about age 30. Stay active throughout your life to maintain health and an active metabolism.
2. Gender - Men generally burn more calories at rest than women because men have more lean mass. The more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolic rate will be. Muscle mass can be maintained/increased (and body fat decreased) throughout your life through interval cardio and weight training.
Strength training also helps to keep your bones strong (preventing osteoporosis).
3. Heredity plays a part in your body's rate of metabolism.
4. Thyroid problems may cause your metabolism to slow down.
5. No matter how fast your metabolism, a caloric surplus (consuming more calories than you burn) causes you to gain fat and weight.
One surprising thing about metabolism is this: the more you weigh, the faster your metabolism will be. This happens because your body must work harder to maintain itself. That is also why it is easier to lose weight in the beginning of a fat loss/weight loss program.
The overweight person's metabolism is running so high that any cut in calories will result in quick weight losses. On the other hand, its easier for that person to regain the weight because her or his body now needs fewer calories to sustain itself.
6. A slow or sluggish metabolism is not the major cause of weight gain. A caloric imbalance is the cause of weight gain (consistently consuming more calories than you burn day after day). If you have a slow or sluggish metabolism? A brisk 30 minute walk each day would get you started in the right direction to speed it up.
7. Strength training (including bodyweight exercises) and cardio exercise will give you a higher metabolic rate. A combination of circuit weight training and high intensity interval cardio will keep your metabolism "revved up" throughout your life.
High intensity workouts will give you maximum fat-burning and heart health benefits in minimum time. You will burn more calories and fat---during and after your workout. Exercise Post-Oxygen Consumption (EPOC) causes your body to burn more calories and fat after a tough workout. Your body has to work harder to get back to its pre-exercise state.
Some of you can break through your fat loss and weight loss plateau by increasing your workout intensity. If you have been doing the same workout at the same pace for 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year or 5 years, your progress has stalled. Your body has the amazing ability to adapt to your workouts and bring your fat loss and weight loss progress to a grinding halt.
8. Sweating is not a gauge of how many calories you are burning. This may be bad news for sauna and steam room lovers. Weight loss or gain is a product of calories consumed or burned. If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight and vice-versa.
9. The best time to exercise is whenever you have the most energy. Working out at any time of the day will increase metabolism for several hours, depending on intensity (as stated in #7).
10. Your metabolism doesn't necessarily have to slow down as you get older. Again, a combination of circuit weight training and high intensity interval cardio will keep your metabolism "revved up" throughout your life.
11. Eating smaller, frequent meals will keep your metabolism "revved up" during the day. Your metabolism will slow down if there are too many hours between meals or if you are on a starvation diet. Eating certain foods/drinks such as peppers and green tea will speed your metabolism some.
Actually, any food will speed your metabolism within the first hour after you eat. A high-protein food speeds metabolism for a longer period of time since protein requires more energy to digest. Your best bet is to eat small meals every 2-3 hours.
I will coach you to transform your body and its definitely not just about weight loss. You will learn what it takes to change your eating habits and lifestyle and start remaking your body a healthy, energized and lean fat-burning machine!
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