Natural Ways to Speed Up Your Metabolism

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By Sarah-Jane Bedwell, RD, LDN

Many diet pills and supplements claim that they can speed up your metabolism – but they can be dangerous and unnecessary. Here are 7 natural ways to speed up your metabolism!

1. Drink green tea
Studies have shown that people who drink green tea or beverages containing green tea extracts, burn up to an extra 70-100 calories per day due to the catechins* (ecgc and polyphenols) in the tea. Drink 20-24oz. per day to get these benefits.

2. Eat more frequently
Never eat less than 1200 calories per day. Every time that you eat, your body experiences the thermic effect of food, which causes an increased metabolism. Eating something small every 3 to 4 hours can keep your metabolism raised.

3. Do cardio and resistance exercise
Exercise is one of the most important factors when it comes to increasing your metabolism. Do intense cardio exercise for 30 minutes or more per day, and your metabolism can stay spiked for up to 2 hours afterwards. Break up your exercise into 2 segments for even more benefits. Do resistance exercise 2 to 3 times per week to increase your muscle mass, and therefore increase your resting metabolic rate to burn more calories 24/7!

4. Get plenty of sleep
If you get less than 7 hours of sleep, you are more than three times likely to gain weight each year than if you get at least 7 hours. Your energy and activity levels are lower when you are tired, which mean your metabolic rate decreases as well.

5. Use caffeine in moderation
1 to 2 cups of coffee per day (or other caffeinated, calorie-free beverage) has shown to be helpful in speeding up your metabolism. The amount of caffeine in just 1 cup of coffee can temporarily increase the metabolism by 15%.

6. Eat spicy foods
Hot peppers, such as jalapeno and cayenne peppers, increase the body’s release of certain hormones (adrenaline), which stimulates the metabolism and increases calorie burn. This is due to capsasin, which is found in the peppers and increases uncoupling proteins found in the muscle. This causes the mitochondria to produce more heat – therefore increasing the metabolic rate. Dried mustard and chili powder has been shown in some studies to cause the same effect.

7. Eat breakfast
Eating a substantial and balanced breakfast will help increase your energy, control your appetite, and speed up your metabolism. Make sure your breakfast has both complex carbs and protein.

* Research aimed at finding the active compounds in green tea has revealed that its protective effects are due chiefly to catechins. Tea contains four main catechin substances: EC, ECg, EGC and EGCg, all of which are inclusively called catechins. Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is the most powerful of these catechins. EGCG as an antioxidant is about 25-100 times more potent than vitamins C and E. (Annotated by editor.)

Sarah-Jane Bedwell, RD, LDN is a nutrition expert, dynamic speaker and corporate consultant. She offers individual nutrition counseling and gives nutrition seminars as part of corporate wellness programs. She has been recognized as an up and coming leader in her field, making regular appearances in both the media and at live events. For more information, visit her blog at Nashville Nutrition Expert.

The articles written by guest contributors are the sole responsibility of the individual writers in terms of factual accuracy and opinion and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher of this blog.

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