Metabolism is the vital life process through which your body converts food to energy. Metabolism of food occurs through a series of chemical reactions that convert the fuel derived from food into energy for your body's functions, including breathing, circulating blood, growing and cell repair. The basic metabolic rate, or BMR, refers to the rate at which your body burns calories, and it varies for each person by caloric intake, heredity, age and gender. The best way to boost metabolism is through diet and exercise.
Eat Proper Diet
Body weight is generally dependent on the amount of calories eaten in one day versus how much of those calories are burned off through physical activity. Some calories are burned during digestion, but certainly not all. Reducing the number of calories eaten in a day is the best way to lose weight. Decreasing the amount of calories eaten daily results in fewer calories that need to be burned off. A well-balanced diet includes lean meats and fish, whole grain breads and pasta, brown rice and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. It is best to avoid eating too many empty calories found in processed foods containing white flour, sugar and saturated fat, such as snack foods, cookies, cakes and sugary soft drinks.
Eat Less More Often
Eating smaller meals more often may help boost metabolism. CNN Health suggests having five smaller meals instead of the usual three large meals. Cutting down on portion size is another way to control calorie intake. Eating smaller meals more often is known as grazing and keeps your metabolism working steadily throughout the day. Eating this way also helps keep blood glucose levels stable throughout the day as opposed to the up-and-down spikes that result from eating three large meals a day.
Increase Physical Activity
Part of the way calories are burned by your body is through digestion in a process called thermogenesis. The rest of the calories must be burned off through physical activity. Getting more exercise by increasing physical activity every day results in burning off more calories. Taking a walk, riding a bike, parking farther away and taking the stairs instead of the elevator are small ways to increase physical activity.
Work Out
Aerobic exercise and weight training help burn twice as many calories at a time and build lean muscle, according to USA Today. Performing 30 minutes of aerobic activity -- such as running, cycling or doing a cardio circuit at the gym -- increases your metabolic rate and burns more calories. If a 30-minute workout isn't possible, performing several high-intensity exercises, such as jumping rope and squat thrusts, for 10 minutes works just as well. Weight training of all major muscle groups adds muscle mass to your body, and muscle burns more calories than fat tissue. Building muscle through strength training and weight training also counteracts the loss of muscle mass through aging.
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