Metabolism is the rate at which your body utilizes calories to fuel exercise and all your vital life forces such as breathing and digestion. Many factors affect your metabolism: genetics, age, muscle mass and activity level. The higher your metabolism, the more calories your body will burn on a continuous basis, which bodes well for weight loss efforts. Certain measures can help boost your metabolism but you must utilize these tools in conjunction with the basic tenets of healthy weight loss.
Step 1
Add strength training to your fitness routine. Muscle requires more energy to maintain and the more muscle mass you have, the more calories your body will burn, not only during exercise but on a continuous basis. Researcher, fitness expert and exercise science professor Wayne L. Westcott says muscle burns nine times more calories than fat.
Step 2
Include interval training in your exercise routine twice a week. This involves switching between intense and less intense bouts of activity; such as walking and sprinting. Obesity expert Dr. Louis Aronne says research has shown adding this type of exercise to your fitness routine can result in double the weight loss. A session should last 20 to 40 minutes.
Step 3
Get enough sleep. Less than four hours has been linked with a drop in metabolism and trouble processing carbohydrates, according to a 1999 study at University of Chicago. In some participants, glucose metabolism was as impaired as someone suffering from type 2 diabetes.
Step 4
Eat enough calories to meet your daily needs. Cutting calories too drastically will slow your metabolism and counteract weight loss efforts. Nutritionist Liz Applegate recommends multiplying your current weight by 11 to determine minimum calorie needs. Research indicates women who eat below 1,200 calories slow their metabolism up to 45 percent.
Step 5
Eat smaller amounts of food more frequently throughout the day rather than three large meals. This will supply your body with a continuous flow of energy throughout the day, which boosts metabolism.
Step 6
Include lean proteins and healthy fats at each meal as recommended by trainer and professional bodybuilder Jen Heath, writing for Bodybuilding.com. Examples include skinless poultry, low-fat dairy, nuts, seeds and avocados.
Step 7
Add low-fat dairy to your diet. A study conducted at Copenhagen University and published in a 2007 issue of "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" found eating calcium-rich dairy products increased the amount of fat excreted in the stool, meaning it appears to block fat absorption in the body. Calcium supplements did not appear to exert the same benefit.
References
- RedBook: 14 Ways to Speed Up Metabolism
- Bodybuilding.com: Eating and Your Metabolism
- University of Chicago Chronicle:Lack of sleep alters hormones, metabolism
- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Effect of dairy calcium or supplementary calcium intake on postprandial fat metabolism, appetite, and subsequent energy intake
Member Comments