Here’s a fast look at 5 major factors that YOU control that play a role in how fast or how slow your metabolism is:
FOOD CHOICES – Eating a balanced, whole-foods-based diet with enough protein and fiber can help boost your metabolism and keep you feeling full. Drinking 8-10 glasses of water a day will also make a big impact!
EXERCISE – Nearly all workouts can help you burn more calories, but strength training and high-intensity interval training workouts can give you some bonus burn after your workout is over.
STRESS – When you are stressed, it can affect your body’s hormones, which can in turn make your body burn fewer calories (and store fat).
SLEEP – Not getting enough sleep also affects your hormones. You can end up feeling extra hungry AND burn fewer calories (this is why I talk about sleep so much!).
OTHER ACTIVITY – This is a secret weapon for metabolism! Basically, the more active you are OUTSIDE your workouts, the more calories you burn all day. It can add up fast.
Here’s the best thing that no one talks about when it comes to those 5 components: when you get them working together, not only does your metabolism rev up … but you also FEEL GREAT.
You’ll feel more energized, lighter on your feet, and you might even start to hear people comment on your healthy “glow!”
Lots more to come in the coming weeks. We’ll dive in deeper with actionable advice and pro tips to help you fire your metabolism up and keep it there!
Foods That Boost Your Metabolism
Protein-rich foods: Eating foods high in protein (meat, eggs, fish, legumes, tofu, etc.) rev up your metabolism because it takes your body more energy to digest them.
This is called the thermic effect of food – different foods require more energy than others.
Fun fact: Protein can boost your metabolism by 15% to 30%, carbs can boost it 5% to 10%, and fats between 0% to 3%.
A bonus with protein is that if you’re losing weight, it helps you hold onto more of your muscle, which also can help you keep your metabolism humming along.
Legumes: On top of containing plenty of plant-based protein, legumes (lentils, black beans, kidney beans, etc.) also contain resistant starch. That’s a form of fiber your body can’t digest.
Resistant starch can help improve your metabolism because it helps stabilize blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity, both of which are key in fat storage.
Coffee and tea: The amount of caffeine in an average cup of coffee (around 100 mg) appears to boost your metabolism by up to 11% for up to 2 hours.
Also, studies suggest the antioxidants and catechins in green tea (especially green tea extract) appear to rev up your metabolism by 3% to 4% (and as much as 8%), over the course of a 24-hour period.
Ginger: One study found that adding a heaping teaspoon (2 grams) of ginger powder to hot water and drinking it after breakfast raised metabolism – people burned about 43 extra calories AND they didn’t feel as hungry for the next three hours.
Water: Drinking 2 cups of cold water temporarily boosts your metabolism by as much 30% for up to 40 minutes after you drink it. Much of the increase has to do with how hard your body works to warm up the water.
Chili peppers: Add some red pepper to your dinner to fire up your metabolism! Many studies have investigated supplements containing capsaicinoids, which is the component that gives chili peppers their “heat.”
You can get some of the same benefits from food by adding the spicy peppers to your recipes. Yum! Throw them into some chili with black beans and ground turkey for a 1-2-3 metabolic punch.
It’s important to know that none of these foods will suddenly make your body burn hundreds of extra calories a day … but it’s pretty surprising how quickly layering in small, consistent changes can rev your daily burn!
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