Metabolism is vital to keeping you alive, performing behind-the-scenes bodily functions such as regulating body temperature, digesting food, circulating blood, and keeping tissues healthy, according to the National Institutes of Health. A fast metabolism can also provide you with plenty of energy from the foods you eat. If you're looking to speed your metabolism, examining certain natural things that can contribute to an increase in metabolic rate -- along with talking to your doctor or dietitian -- is the first step toward success.
Meal Planning
Planning your meals to speed up your metabolism involves starting at the beginning of the day with a hearty, nutritious breakfast. Your body is in a state of fasting while you sleep, which causes your metabolic rate to slow almost to a standstill, reports Penn State University. Eating a healthy breakfast rich in complex carbohydrates, protein and nutrients is essential to kick-start your metabolism. To keep it speeding throughout the day, reduce the portion sizes of your meals and eat them more frequently. If you allow more than three hours to pass without providing your body with food, your metabolism will begin to slow down.
Green Tea
Green tea is one of the most popular beverages consumed worldwide, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center, and drinking it may be a natural way to speed your metabolism -- especially for fat-burning purposes. Green tea's effects on metabolism are due not only to the tea's content of caffeine -- which increases heart rate as well as enhancing mental alertness -- but also to the action of catechins, chemicals that are present in large amounts within green tea. Although more scientific research is needed to confirm green tea's precise effects on metabolism, the UMMC reports that scientific studies have confirmed that catechins from green tea boost metabolism to burn fat in people who are overweight or obese.
Hot Peppers
Spicing up your meals with hot peppers can temporarily speed up your metabolic rate by as much as 20 percent for up to half an hour, reports Penn State. This is because hot peppers such as cayenne, jalapenos, habaneros and red peppers contain the chemical capsaicin, which is responsible for the "heat" of spicy peppers. When you bite into a spicy dish and feel your face begin to heat up and sweat start forming on your brow, you are experiencing capsaicin's temporary speeding of your basal, or resting metabolic rate. According to Florida State University, capsaicin-rich peppers also work to enhance digestion, another key metabolic process.
Resistance Training and Protein
Resistance training, or strength training exercise, is another natural way to speed up your overall metabolism. Exercises such as pushups, squats, abdominal crunches and biceps curls work your muscles. Not only does your metabolic rate increase while you work out and get your blood pumping, it continues to do so as your muscles expend energy to rebuild themselves. Consuming plenty of protein in your diet is key to lean muscle growth, since it provides your worked muscle cells with the material they need in order to rebuild during a process called muscle protein synthesis.
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