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5 Ways to Get the Body's Metabolism Soaring

Michele Foley — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 10:40:25 PST

More than ever before, new research shows that what we eat to how we work out can actually speed up the body's metabolism - sometimes resulting in an extra 200 calories burned per day! At that rate, you can easily lose a few extra pounds per month, which is good news for those seeking a little help with weight loss. What's great is that these little tweaks require minimal effort and only add to a healthy lifestyle.

The Top Fat-Burning Foods

Health — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:10:08 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

By Paige Greenfield

It's true: certain foods have a very high thermogenic effect, so you literally scorch calories as you chew. Other eats contain nutrients and compounds that stoke your metabolic fire. Feed your metabolism with these.

Whole Grains
Your body burns twice as many calories breaking down whole foods (especially those rich in fiber such as oatmeal and brown rice) than processed foods.

Health.com: Best Superfoods For Weight Loss

Lean Meats
Protein has a high thermogenic effect: you burn about 30 percent of the calories the food contains during digestion (so a 300-calorie chicken breast requires about 90 calories to break it down).

Low-Fat Dairy Products
Rich in calcium and vitamin D, these help preserve and build muscle mass - essential for maintaining a robust metabolism.

Health.com: Ditch Five Pounds Without Trying

Green Tea
Drinking four cups of green tea a day helped people shed more than six pounds in eight weeks, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports. Credit EGCG, a compound in the brew that temporarily speeds metabolism after sipping it. To up your intake, keep a jug of iced tea in the fridge.

Keep reading to see other foods that burn fat!

How to Get Your Metabolism Moving

Health — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:03:06 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

Does your metabolism grind to a halt after 35? Can certain foods rev it up? Answers ahead — and they're good.
By Paige Greenfield

Here's something to feel good about: your body is a calorie-burning machine. You'll even torch a few while reading this article. The point is, every single thing you do — from breathing to eating to sleeping — uses energy. The number of calories it would take just to lie in bed all day is called your resting metabolic rate. And just like your curly hair or warm personality, yours is unique.

"There are so many factors that determine your metabolic rate," says Janet Rankin, PhD, professor of human nutrition, foods, and exercise at Virginia Tech. Among them: your height and weight (bigger people burn more calories), your gender (women have slower metabolisms than men), your age (your metabolic rate declines as you get older), how much muscle or fat you have (muscle burns more calories than fat does), and your DNA.

Health.com: Little Ways to Lose Big Pounds

Although you can't rewire your double helix or switch back the clock, there's still plenty you can do to be a fast burner, Rankin says. All you need to do is remember these four research-backed truths.

Cardio Revs Your Metabolism For Hours Afterward
Resistance training often hogs the metab-boosting spotlight. It's no wonder, since a pound of muscle at rest fries three times as many calories as a pound of fat. However, cardio is every bit as crucial for keeping your metabolism humming.

New research explains why: In a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, people pedaled a stationary bike as hard as they could for 47 minutes.
The finding: They slashed 190 calories above their resting metabolic rate for 14 hours after their workout. Add that to the 519 calories, on average, the cyclists scorched from the workout itself, and that's one heck of a sweat session.

"If you do just two to three vigorous bouts of exercise per week for 45 minutes, you could lose a pound of fat every two weeks from the combination of calories expended during exercise plus what you burn afterward," says study author David Nieman, PhD, a professor of exercise science at Appalachian State University.

So how can you tell if you're pushing hard enough? Any sweat-inducing activity you can sustain for 45 minutes will do the trick.

More useful tips after the break.

4 Don'ts For Your Next Breakfast

Leta Shy — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 02:16:35 PST

When it comes to meals, breakfast is the champ. Instead of grabbing a muffin at the coffee shop to fuel your day, give the mealtime the attention it deserves. Here are four don'ts for the most important meal of the day.

Don't skip it: Eating breakfast helps jump-start your metabolism after it slows down during your sleep. Not only that, but eating breakfast is an important tool in maintaining weight loss. So don't wait until lunch to nosh; eat a filling, healthy meal early in the day to keep your energy up, brain on, and weight loss goals in check.

Don't delay: The best time to eat breakfast is within an hour of waking up, so don't delay! Unless, of course, you are working out first, in which case you should make sure you fuel up with a pre-workout snack before you go (read our tips for choosing a pre-workout snack here). Afterward, be sure to eat a protein- and carbohydrate-filled breakfast 30 minutes to two hours after a workout in order to fuel your body the right way.

Read on for more breakfast don'ts.

What Helps (and What Doesn't) in the Quest For a Faster Metabolism

Leta Shy — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 13:57:24 PDT

There are things you can't help about your own metabolism, like aging and genetics, but these don't have the final say in how revved up your metabolism can be. If you feel like your metabolism could use a boost, try these tips.

Start or amp up your strength training. If you're a cardio girl through and through, you've probably heard people telling you that you should add weight training to your routine. That's because muscles burn calories at a higher rate than fat, so your metabolism will be getting a bigger boost the more muscle mass you have. Already incorporating strength training without seeing any more results? Try amping up your routine, switching the type of workout, or adding a yoga or Pilates class to your routine.

Get working on those intervals. There are many benefits to interval training, like better endurance, stamina, and speed, not to mention increased fat burning, so if you haven't incorporated interval training into your routine, now's the time to start! Here are some interval workouts to get you started.

Eat the right foods. Slow-burning protein keeps you feeling full, and not only that, it increases your metabolic rate as well, since your body is working to digest all that nutritionally rich food. Check out more foods you should eat to increase your metabolism here.

Eat at the right time. It's not just what you eat, it's when. Eating breakfast shortly after you wake up, for example, is one of the most important dietary practices you can make when you want to up your metabolism. So make sure you eat breakfast as soon as possible, and eat at regular intervals so you keep your metabolism revved up.

Read on to learn the one thing you shouldn't be doing if you want to boost your metabolism.

From the Community: 8 Easy Ways to Rev Up Metabolism

Fit Community — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 13:15:14 PDT

Looking for ways to speed up your metabolism and shed a few pounds this Summer? FitSugar reader eNutritionist has eight suggestions on how you can do just that; she shared this post in our Diet and Fitness Tips community group.

Whether you're trying to lose weight, or you just want to maintain a sleek physique for the Summer, boosting your metabolism is an effective way to burn extra calories. In this article I have put together a few diet and exercise tips to rev up your metabolism, so you can burn fat faster and look fabulous in the sunshine!

Power breakfasts - Always eat a healthy breakfast. After going 10-12 hours overnight without food, your energy reserves are low so your body, and perhaps more importantly, your brain, needs fuel. When you skip breakfast your metabolism slows to conserve energy and this can actually make it more difficult to maintain weight. Many studies have shown that people who regularly eat breakfast are less likely to be overweight than people who don't; they're also more inclined to eat less during the course of the day. Like any other meal, a balanced breakfast should include foods from each of the major food groups: some protein, a reasonable amount of complex carbohydrates, and a little fat. These three nutrients will help stave off hunger pangs and keep blood sugar levels balanced until lunch. It's also a good time to get at least two servings of fruit. For instance, one small glass of fruit juice or a sliced banana and some raisins sprinkled over your cereal. If you can tick off two servings at breakfast you are providing your body with a good boost of vitamins and minerals and are well on target to reaching your "five a day."
Eat little and often - As strange as it may sound, eating frequently can actually help you lose weight. This is because our bodies can burn calories from digesting and absorbing food. Grazing on small, regular snacks throughout the day can help keep your metabolic rate elevated for up to two to three hours after eating. Ideally, snacks should be spaced around your breakfast, lunch and dinner to help balance blood sugars and sustain energy levels. Healthy snacking options include a handful of plain nuts and seeds, natural yogurt with mixed fruit, raw vegetable sticks with hummus, a slice of rye bread topped with low fat cottage cheese, or rice cakes with almond butter. Aim to have two to three small healthy snacks a day at two to three hour intervals for a calorie burning boost.

See even more tips after the break!

Weight Loss Tips: 10 Ways to Increase Your Metabolism

Shape — Thu, 26 May 2011 04:10:35 PDT

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from Shape here on FitSugar.

Weight Loss Tip #1: Maximize Your Muscle - Muscles are fat-burning furnaces, so be sure to do enough resistance training to build and maintain them (these fast workouts tone your whole body in 30 minutes), and follow your workout with a healthy meal or snack that contains protein, carbohydrates and fat. Building new muscle raises your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) so you'll burn more calories every day.

Weight Loss Tip #2: Don't Forget Cardio - Cardio improves definition and burns the fat that covers your muscles, especially belly fat. Combining regular aerobic exercise with strength training will give you the slimming effect you've been going for. After all, toning without cardio is like building a house on a weak foundation. Blast calories with these 20-minute cardio workouts from celebrity trainer Jackie Warner.

Weight Loss Tip #3: Never Skip Meals - Eat six small meals a day to avoid blood-sugar spikes and minimize urges to binge. Try to schedule meals at the same time each day. If you feed yourself well throughout the day, you'll learn to understand when your body truly needs food. You can't starve yourself and expect to make good choices at the next meal. Need a few healthy lunch ideas? Check out these top food swaps from a nutritionist.

See the rest of the tips after the break!

From the Community: Why Can Men Pig Out, but Still Not Gain Weight?

Fit Community — Wed, 18 May 2011 14:08:03 PDT

Ever wonder why it seems like men can eat anything, but still not gain any weight? FitSugar reader livingthin turned to an expert for an answer and posted it in our 10 Pounds DOWN! community group.

Q: So I understand the math, 3500 calories equals one pound. But there are obviously other factors, right? Otherwise my husband who eats cookies, chips, and drinks tons of Mountain Dew all day would gain tons of weight - yet he barely weighs 160 lbs. (and pretty much has weighed that his whole life). I mean he is pretty active, but so am I, but if I were to eat half as much as him I would gain at least a pound! What's the deal? - Keri

A: Ah Keri. This is such an awesome question regarding the unfairness of Mother Nature. To best explain this, we turned to Michele Olson, PhD, professor of physical education and exercise science at Auburn University Montgomery, for a more detailed, scientific answer.

"You are correct. One pound of fat is rich with a lot of energy - 3,500 calories to be exact. And, if we did some math on the dietary values of what your husband consumes, those values would be high, and, in a lot of cases, should indicate fat and weight gain. But, the old idea that some people have a faster metabolic rate is not a bit of physiological folklore. It's true and does explain how your husband can ingest a lot of calories (even "bad" ones) and not gain weight," explains Olson.

Find out why men lose weight easier than women after the break!

5 Reasons Your Diet May Be Failing You

Michele Bell — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 04:00:00 PST

Having trouble losing those five pounds you've been swearing off since the start of the new year? While you may be working tirelessly to rid yourself of that last pesky weight, you may be duping your own body into failure without even knowing it. Come check out these five reasons why you may not be meeting your weight loss goal.

Your H20 level: Are you drinking enough water? You may not be getting enough to keep your body burning the calories and fat you've been trying to get rid of. Keeping hydrated will help you to keep your metabolism going and the calories burning.
Don't forget breakfast: While you don't need to load up on flapjacks and sausage, you should eat a healthy breakfast to get your day started. If you get going without any fuel in the tank, your tummy may trick you into snacking on the wrong things or eating an over-sized lunch.
Empty calorie sips: Check the nutritional data on your coffee or sodas to make sure you're not taking down too many empty calories. An easy fix? Switch to plain old water. See point number one!

Ready to see points four and five? Just

Fit Quiz: Do You Know Your Metabolism Facts?

FitSugar — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 04:30:34 PDT

Remember the days when you could eat a pack of donuts and not worry about the aftermath? Well, some of you may still be able to do that but the metabolism rate eventually tries to rule out those sort of sneaky treats . . . and for good reason. The sugar stays the same, but too often, our metabolism rate does not. If you know the basic facts on metabolism, you'll know why donuts aren't always a good thing. Come see how well you know the ABCs on the fat burning subject.

Take the Quiz