Your metabolism is how many calories you burn on a day in which you are sedentary. This number will fluctuate up and down throughout your life, depending on any number of factors, most of which you have full control over. As far as calorie burn goes, running vigorously burns through more calories than any other exercise. One hour of moderately intense running can burn through over 1,000 calories. Increasing your metabolism speed, paired with daily running sessions can trim fat and add lean muscle in a healthy and natural way.
What To Do
Step 1
Start counting calories. According to the mayo clinic, one pound of fat equals approximately 3,500 calories. The only way you're going to lose fat effectively is if you know how many calories you're eating every day, and then compare that with how many calories you're burning.
Step 2
Eat healthier food. When you exercise, your body burns primarily calories consisting of carbohydrates and fat. In order to fuel your body through each workout, load up on complex carbohydrates before-hand and mix in a steady stream of each of the other major six food groups throughout the rest of the day.
Step 3
Eat at the right time. According to the Mayo Clinic, in order for your body to process the food you eat before a workout, you need at least three hours after a large meal. If it's a smaller meal, you need to wait at least two hours. This allows your stomach to digest the food completely. That means that during your workout your body won't be dedicating blood and energy toward digesting ... instead of your exercise.
Step 4
Eat five to six small meals per day. Eating often allows your body to get used to burning through food calories on a regular basis. Over time, this speeds up your metabolism, which means you start to burn more calories even if you're just sitting on your butt.
Step 5
Keep your heart rate in the fat burn zone. Your heart rate and how much fat you burn work in tandem when you exercise. If you keep your heart rate between 50 and 85 percent of its maximum, your body will burn fat at its highest possible rate. Anywhere from 50 to 85 percent of the calories you burn will be fat calories.
Step 6
Run every day. If you run every day, you will not only burn through a maximum amount of exercise, but you will also increase the speed of your metabolism. As you burn through fat and replace it with lean muscle, your metabolism rises, because muscle naturally burns more calories than fat. On a daily basis, one pound of muscle will burn through 35 to 50 more calories than one pound of fat.
Tips and Warnings
- Start out by running short distances. Set goals for yourself and gradually increase the distance over a matter of weeks and months.
- Set aside five to 10 minutes of stretching time before and after every running session. This will help to maintain flexibility and lessen your chance of injury. Too intense of a run without a warm-up can lead to pulled or even torn muscles.
Things You'll Need
- Healthy food
- Running Shoes
References
- The Walking Site: Your Target Heart Rate
- National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute: Estimated Calorie Requirements
- "Runners World": Can You Really Boost Your Metabolism: Amy Burfoot: August 2004
- FitBuff.com: How To Speed Up Your Metabolism
- ShapeFit: Exercise Questions - How Many Calories Does 1 Pound of Muscle Burn?
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