There are a handful of practices you can incorporate into your lifestyle to help rev your metabolism.
It seems some people are blessed with fast metabolisms while others complain of slow ones. Like fingerprints, metabolism — the process of converting the food you eat into energy — is unique to each person and based on a variety of factors.
Your age, height, weight, sex and body composition all contribute to your individual metabolic rate. Having more lean muscle enables you to burn more calories at rest as compared to having more body fat. On the contrary, things that will slow your metabolism include age and under-eating, as your body will become more efficient with the calories consumed.
“If your metabolism has slowed down to adapt to your caloric intake, you can boost it back up by consuming more energy — food,” says McKenzie Flinchum, RD, LD/N, CPT, owner of The Flexible Dietitian LLC, who took first place at an NPC figure show in 2013. “Additionally, since lean muscle burns more energy than body fat, if you exercise and change your body composition from less fat to more muscle, your resting metabolic rate will increase.”
Even though there is no magic pill to boost your metabolism further than its natural rate, Flinchum says there are a handful of practices you can incorporate into your lifestyle to help rev it up:
Amount of food
Make sure you are eating enough. Not too much, not overeating — but enough to support your energy needs. “If your goals include weight loss, being in a caloric deficit is necessary,” Flinchum says. “But keep in mind that your body’s metabolic rate can slow down to become more efficient with the calories/energy that you are consuming.” So if you are feeling like you are under-eating but your body is not losing any weight, your metabolism has likely been impacted. Use this signal to slowly start increasing your food intake to allow your metabolism to speed back up to its normal rate.
Lift weights
Don’t just stop at cardio when you’re planning your workouts. “Lifting weights and doing resistance training will build lean muscle, which will increase the amount of calories you burn at rest,” Flinchum explains. “As a result, your resting metabolic rate will be increased.”
Catch those zzz’s
While sleep itself won’t boost your metabolism, it is an important piece of a healthy lifestyle. Sleep deprivation can cause you to overeat to compensate for a lack of energy you may feel.
Morning workout
Start your day with a brisk walk outside, a few squats and jumping jacks in your home, or a trip to the gym. “While this won’t impact your long-term resting metabolic rate, the increase in your heart rate can be a good start to the day as it can help burn some extra calories and boost your energy,” Flinchum says. If you’re not a morning person, then you can do it later in the day — any type of movement that will burn calories and help burn body fat over time can have a positive impact on your metabolism.
Nutritious foods
Even though there is not a magic food that will boost your metabolism, eating a balance of nutritious foods can help you feel and look your best. “Eat a variety of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, beans and legumes, and lean protein,” Flinchum says. “Aim for a good source of fiber at each meal, too.”
Bringing It All Together
If you start getting enough sleep and eating nutritious foods in replacement of added sugars, excess fats, or a lot of processed foods with high sodium content or low fiber, Flinchum says you may notice a difference after just a few days. “Incorporating more vegetables and fiber-rich foods will boost the fiber and micronutrient content of your diet,” she explains. “Exercising and increasing your heart rate will burn more calories instantaneously. In order to boost your metabolic rate by increasing lean muscle and decreasing body fat, it may take months of hard work and staying consistent with an exercise program, but it will pay off. Your body composition and metabolism will both change as a result.”
Written by Jill Schildhouse for Oxygen Magazine and legally licensed through the Matcha publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@getmatcha.com.
Boosting your Metabolism with MariGold
Did you know that whey isolate protein is an excellent dietary supplement for anyone looking to rev up their metabolism?
One of the ways that whey isolate protein can help rev up metabolism is by increasing the thermic effect of food (TEF). The thermic effect of food is the energy required to digest, absorb, and metabolize the nutrients in your food.
Protein has a higher TEF than carbohydrates and fat, meaning that your body burns more calories digesting and processing protein than it does digesting and processing other macronutrients. This is because protein requires more energy to break down into its constituent amino acids, which can then be used by the body for various functions.
Whey isolate protein, being a high-quality protein, has an even higher TEF than other types of protein. This means that consuming whey isolate protein can increase the number of calories you burn during the digestion and processing of food. This effect can be even more pronounced when combined with resistance training, as the body requires more energy to repair and rebuild muscle tissue.
In addition to its ability to increase TEF, whey isolate protein can also help rev up metabolism by promoting the growth and maintenance of lean muscle mass. Muscle tissue requires more energy to maintain than fat tissue, meaning that the more muscle mass you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate will be.
MariGold Whey Isolate Protein Powder is a rich source of essential amino acids, and comes in a variety of flavors including Creamy Vanilla, Rich Chocolate Malt, Strawberry Sundae, and Peanut Butter. We also have our classic Unflavored version for those who just want a clean tasting, premium quality protein boost. Our protein powder can be enjoyed on their own as a delicious protein shake, or added to your favorite morning or afternoon smoothie for an extra nutrient powerhouse drink!
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