Healthy Ways to Keep Your Metabolism Up

Keep the weight off! Learn 4 ways to keep your metabolism up.

Is your metabolism sluggish? Are you starting to put on extra pounds? Are there ways to keep your metabolism up and keep the extra weight off? Yes, you can learn how to speed up metabolism, feel more energetic and maintain your ideal body weight. Learn what other factors have a direct impact on your metabolic rate besides eating healthy foods that increase metabolism.

The process of metabolism is how your body converts food and drink into energy that your body uses. The calories that you consume are merged with oxygen, which is then released into energy. When you are inactive and at rest, your body uses its resting metabolic rate for bodily functions such as breathing, blood circulation, digestion, heartbeat, cell growth, healing, etc. Body size and gender are specific to metabolism also, with men, larger people, or people with more muscle mass, using more energy. Some of the many things that affect your metabolism are:

1. Body Weight

Your body weight is impacted by what you consume, genetics, hormones, and lifestyle. Some people believe that they have a slow metabolism and that is why they gain weight, but there are ways to keep your metabolism up to speed. To lose those extra pounds you should eat healthy foods that increase metabolism, and also become more physically active to burn up extra calories.

2. Food

A proper diet includes eating healthy foods that increase metabolism. Start off your day by eating a healthy breakfast that includes protein, fiber, coffee or tea. Consuming coffee and tea is one of the best ways to keep your metabolism up. Coffee or tea can raise your metabolism by up to 8 percent. Another great breakfast choice is eating oatmeal or yogurt. You can learn how to speed up metabolism by including more organic foods in your diet, such as grapes, cherries, apples, strawberries, pears, lettuce, celery, and bell and chili peppers. To maintain a proper amount of lean muscle mass, your body needs protein, so eat lean meats, chicken, fish, nuts, dairy, carrots, spinach, beans, lentils, protein shakes etc. Avoid alcohol because it interferes with your body’s metabolic processes. Eating five or six mini meals per day is another way to keep your metabolism up and burn extra calories.

3. Supplements

There are many ways to keep your metabolism up, and one of them is by taking supplements if you are nutrient deficient. Make sure you have enough vitamin D, iron, vitamin A, chromium, vitamin C, and all the B vitamins. Other items that will keep your metabolism up include: green tea extract, cayenne pepper, conjugated linoleic acid, ginseng, gurauna root and caffeine.

4. Exercise

The exercise you do on a daily basis will affect the amount of energy you expend and the amount of calories you burn. Exercise builds lean muscle mass, which is directly related to metabolism. The more you age the less muscle mass you will probably have – so exercise is important. Aerobic, or cardio, exercise for 15 minutes a day is a good way to increase your metabolism and burn extra calories. This can include Zumba, dancing, running, cycling, house cleaning and repairs, swimming, lawn mowing, calisthenics, jumping, tennis, racquet ball, team sports, hiking, etc.

Exercise can begin with a low intensity and build to a high intensity. Exercise will build up your muscles, improve blood circulation and pressure, facilitate in oxygen transportation, increase red blood cells, reduce the risk for diabetes, and improve your mental health. How to speed up metabolism and stay healthy definitely includes a good exercise routine.

As you can see there are many ways to speed up your metabolism. You should eat a healthy diet that increases your metabolic rate, and build lean muscle mass through exercise. By following these guidelines you can live a healthy lifestyle and maintain a healthy weight.