Boost Your Metabolism!!!

When you want to create a lean, firm body, the best way to accomplish it is with an effective workout program and a healthy eating plan. But that’s not the end of it . . . . No matter how much you’re putting into your exercise sessions, practicing a range of healthy habits the rest of the time can give you more bang for your buck!!!!!

Here is a day’s worth of metabolism boosting activities. Individually they may be minor; but together they can be a metabolism boosting machine. Add these tips to your weight loss arsenal, and you’ll start seeing results almost immediately.

Morning

1.Get some sun (By this I don’t mean get a tan). Go outside. A little outdoor time in the morning can help you slim down in three ways. First, bright light helps regulate your body clock (think circadian rhythms), so you’ll be more energetic during the day and sleep better at night. Second, during the winter months, sunshine helps ward off SAD (seasonal affective disorder[Also known as SDD, seasonal deppression disorder]), a condition that can lead to uncontrolled food cravings. Third, sunlight on your skin increases your levels of vitamin D, which are associated with a higher metabolism and a lower risk of obesity. (While sunscreen cuts down on your natural vitamin D production, experts warn that you shouldn’t spend much time outside without it. You can also get more D by taking multivitamins, drinking fortified milk, and eating fatty fish.)

2.Eat a good breakfast. Research has shown that a filling breakfast that includes both lean protein and complex carbohydrates helps you burn fat all day (and keeps you satisfied longer, too). In a study presented to the Endocrine Society, those who ate a hearty breakfasts stuck to their food plans and ended up losing more weight than those who didn’t, despite the fact that their daily caloric intake was actually slightly higher.

3.Have a hot beverage. As you’ve surely heard by now, regular consumption of green or oolong tea can raise your metabolism by ~5%. But plain coffee and expresso gives your fat-burning ability a boost too (Try not to ruin this effect by loading your morning coffee with tons of cream and sugar). Green coffee beans have been found to boost your metabolism through the combination of caffeine and something called chlorogenic acid. While roasting lowers the amount of this chemical, according to the Coffee Science Information Centre, a light roast retains more than a dark roast.

Midday

1.Take the stairs. Your daily workout will do more than anything else to burn fat and build lean muscle. But that doesn’t mean you should be a slug the rest of the time. A highly publicized British study found that kids who were very active during physical education classes were that much less active throughout the day, which suggests that you may need to make a conscious effort to move your body when you’re not working out, including taking such simple steps as walking everywhere you can and using stairs rather than elevators. Even relatively brief periods of exercise will help keep your metabolism revving at a higher level.

2.Learn to love nuts. All nuts are fairly high in calories, but they’re also full of nutrients, especially protein and healthful fats. In a study at Purdue University, when people added 500 calories of peanuts to their daily diets, they ate less during meals and increased their resting metabolic rates by 11 percent. You don’t need to eat so many, though. Just an ounce at a time will go a long way toward boosting your metabolism and keeping you satisfied.

3.Avoid Boxed Food. Many boxed dinners or boxed foods are overprocessed and lack the nutrients that your body needs. Therefore your body will continue to crave nutrients and this will lead to an increase in your appetite. At the grocery store stock up on fresh vegetables, fruits, grain and meats. This will increase the nutrients delivered to your body and will help fight hunger pains.

4.RELAX. Stress can take a toll on your metabolism and cardiovascular health. When scientists at Georgetown University fed two groups of mice a high-fat, high-sugar diet, the ones under stress gained more than twice as much weight as the low-stress group. If your job (or any other part of your life) leaves you feeling like a ball of anxiety and stress, try to find ways of gaining some peace. At some point during the day, take a break for meditation, yoga, or just sitting in a peaceful place and thinking about something pleasant.

Nighttime

1.Don’t make dinner your biggest meal. As the day passes, our metabolism slows down. Therefore your food intake should match the level of your metabolism. Don’t pig out, because all your excess calories from dinner will be stored as fat as your metabolism slows down in the evening.

2. Limit your alchohol intake. Your body loves alcohol—so much so, in fact, that it’ll burn its byproducts as fuel before anything else. That means that while you’re processing alcohol, you’re not burning fat. Of course, alcoholic beverages also have calories, virtually none of which are good for anything other than helping you gain weight.

3.Get plenty of sleep. While you’re asleep, your body is hard at work producing hormones responsible for weight loss, muscle gain, and glucose metabolism. Studies have found that consistently getting less than the optimal 7-8 hours per night leads to a lower metabolism and a higher body mass. If you find yourself getting sleepy during the day, going to bed just an hour earlier could make a significant difference in your waistline.