You’ve heard the saying “work smarter, not harder” before I’m sure. While that may not apply to everything, when it comes to your metabolism, the statement is spot on! When it comes to burning fat and getting in shape, the more you have working for you, the less pressure you will experience. A faster metabolism is a force that will help excel you into result. Let’s take a look at five easy ways you can boost your metabolism!
1. Drink green tea daily
In a small study, green tea appeared to raise metabolic rates and speed up fat oxidation. Green tea has thermogenic properties and promotes fat oxidation beyond that explained by its caffeine content. It’s also great for preventing disease due to its high antioxidant levels and makes a great preworkout. For best metabolic results, drink green tea daily.
2. Eat hot and spicy peppers
Get familiar with spicy ingredients like cayenne pepper, hot sauce, jalapeños, chipotle, and hot salsa, and incorporate them into more meals. Try adding hot peppers like jalapeños to scrambled eggs, chicken or tuna salad, and tossed salads. New research has found that adding spicy ingredients to your food can help suppress your appetite and even stoke your metabolic fire a bit. “In one study, dieters who didn’t normally eat spicy foods ate a soup seasoned with cayenne pepper for lunch, resulting in them consuming 60 fewer calories at their next meal and burning an extra ten calories. Sure, it’s a small amount, but over time it adds up!”
3. Drink water
Staying hydrated is not only vital to staying healthy and alive, it can also is a huge part of metabolism functions. Water is necessary to maintain a healthy metabolism, without the pepper amount out bodies suffer and slow down. In fact, about 60% of your body is water; and getting the proper amount is a great way to flush out unwanted toxins. That in itself will promote metabolism health. So how much do we actually need? According to the Institute of Medicine, the requirement for the average woman is nine cups of fluids per day. For men, it bumps up to 13 cups. Very athletic individuals and people who live in super-hot climates require even more.
4. Eat protein at every meal
That’s easy enough, right? Think chicken, fish, eggs, quinoa, beans and more. Your body uses energy to digest food, eating any type of food at all gives your metabolism a slight uptick — but the consumption of protein contributes the greatest metabolic boost when compared with carbohydrates and fat. In addition, protein can increase your metabolism by helping to maintain and build muscle mass. The more lean muscle you have, the more calories it takes your body to host them, burning more calories while you aren’t just in the gym!
5. Get more sleep
Before you say “that’s impossible,” know that research has shown that sleep deprivation can have a significant impact on your ability to lose weight. The major players in this snooze-lose link are two hormones: Leptin and ghrelin. Lack of sleep results in lower levels of the appetite-suppressing leptin, and higher levels of the appetite-boosting ghrelin. For anyone trying to reach a fitness goal, that is bad news. Like I said before, we want our metabolism working for us, not against! Also, when we’re tired from lack of sleep, we have less resolve to fight cravings and mindless munching. The obvious solution to this problem is to get more sleep — aim for at least seven hours a night.
