Metabolism is defined as the speed at which your body burns calories, or energy for fuel. Everyone's metabolism is different and may depend on age, genetics, activity level, weight and medical condition. There are natural ways you can speed your metabolism that benefit overall health and wellness, build lean muscle mass, which burns calories faster than fat, and sometimes even enables you to eat that piece of cake without gaining an ounce.
Step 1
Exercise every day. In order to increase metabolism quickly, increase your activity level. If you don't exercise, start. Try to exercise at least 30 minutes a day, but for optimal benefits and to really increase or speed up your metabolism, try to exercise for at least an hour a day. An aerobic exercise is the best, as it requires the most energy to perform. Jogging, bicycling, a rousing game of tennis or basketball are excellent methods of exercising, as are exercise DVDs you can perform at home, as are step aerobics, kickboxing or martial arts classes at your local gym or community center.
Step 2
Lift weights at least three days a week. No, you don't have to join the gym or compete with the big guys, but purchase a set of dumbbells to use at home. Women can start with 3-, 5-, 8- and 10-pound weights, and men can start with 8-, 10-, 12- and 15-pound weights. Add weights to your exercise routine by holding on to weights while walking, lunging, squatting or performing bench press moves on your floor. Perform biceps and triceps curls, shoulder lifts, deltoid and shoulder presses for a great way not only to build lean muscle mass, but also to increase the speed and amount of calories burned for energy to perform those moves.
Step 3
Drink plenty of water. Every cell, tissue and organ in the body requires water for optimal function. According to fitbuff.com, try to drink at least 64 ounces of water a day, even up to a gallon. Yes, you'll be spending quite a bit of time going back and forth to the bathroom for the first few days, but the long-term benefits of drinking plenty of water will pay off.
Step 4
Kick-start the metabolism every day by eating breakfast. According to consumeraffairs.com, after a long night of inactivity, the body won't start burning calories until it's sure it's going to be fed. If you don't feed your body, it's going to believe it is starving and will hang on to every calorie or ounce of fat.
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