Great Tips on How Food Can Increase Your Metabolism

by Alan Bryan

The human body’s metabolic rate is as constant as your heart – it never stops. Even if you are resting, your metabolism chugs along processing calories. While the actual chain of events during the metabolic process are quite complicated, your metabolism can be simply described as the system the body uses to process and use the energy from the calories you intake.

If you have struggled through dieting to increase muscle while losing fat, it is highly likely to be a direct result of your metabolic rate actually slowing down and storing fat instead of speeding up. The change is likely attributed to many of the fad diets that are out there today. The fact is your metabolism feeds off of two main sources of energy – protein and carbohydrates.

One significant challenge with low carb and low protein diet plans is how to get your metabolic rate to increase to burn off the calories needed for weight loss. Since your metabolism thrives on these ingredients to operate, starving your metabolism of them will actually cause a reduction in overall metabolic rate. A real challenge then arises as your body will fight harder to keep fat stored in order to survive.

You can raise your body’s metabolic rate by eating a diet rich in protein and carbohydrates. One key, though, is eating the right kind of carbohydrates and proteins to foster weight loss. Two things to avoid at all costs are processed and refined foods, for example breads that are made with processed flours and sugars. These unnatural ingredients are disastrous to your metabolism.

Not all protein is created equal – protein rich fish, nuts, and lean meat are great sources. Avoid fatty cuts of steak or hamburger to give your body the best possible protein available. Unprocessed or refined grains are a great carbohydrate source, such as whole grain breads and bars. These can also contain good amounts of fiber, which further enhances the metabolic process.

For any weight loss program to be successful, your metabolism must be given a jump start. One great way to accomplish this, along with your diet changes, is light weight lifting. Lean muscle works harder to burn calories, giving your metabolism another little boost. In order to lose weight permanently, building lean muscle and changing your diet to natural foods will increase your metabolism, burning more calories than you take in.

A popular method of diet is to stick with the three large meals per day approach, and just cut back on portions at those meals. This is actually counterintuitive to increasing your metabolic rate as only fueling three times per day, and at reduced calories, will cause the body to think food is at a shortage and fat storage increases.

Alternatively, the most effective plan will be to eat several times per day, as many as 6 or seven, at smaller portions each time. Your caloric intake will reduce overall, but your metabolism starts to understand food is plentiful since it is coming at frequent intervals. Making the most of your diet routine, along with some lean muscle gain, will get your metabolic rate really going in the right direction.

At the beginning of any diet plan, it is normal to see a nice drop in weight almost instantly because of the high metabolic rate and suddenly reduced calories. The negative calorie balance will allow for some weight loss quite quickly. But, your body will adjust to the new levels and that initial pace will rapidly decline without other changes. Most dieters experience this plateau effect and will give up on their diets at this point. Sustained weight loss can be achieved through a nice combination of healthy eating of proteins and carbohydrates, lean muscle development, and an exercise plan.

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