Weight Loss: Boost Your Metabolism Naturally

Tuesday, August 31, 2010 by: Dianna Dill
Tags: metabolism, energy, health news

(NewsTarget) Metabolism is a term often associated with weight loss. It is the name for the process by which the body converts what you eat and drink into the energy needed to power everything you do, from moving and breathing to thinking and growing. It involves a series of biochemical reactions that burn the calories in food and beverages to release the energy your body needs to fuel essential bodily processes. Stated in basic terms, weight loss generally occurs when the body burns calories at a faster rate than it takes them in. Here's how can boost your metabolism naturally to lose weight.

Exercise Regularly
Exercise burns calories and ranks among the best ways to boost your metabolism naturally. Walking, running, swimming and biking increases the energy your body requires, which in turn increases your metabolism, according to Gary Miller, PhD, associate professor at Wake Forest University, North Carolina. Even after you stop exercising, your body will burn calories at a faster rate for several hours afterward. As a general goal, the Mayo Clinic recommends including at least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise or other physical activity into your daily routine.

Strength Training
Muscle burns more calories than fat can, writes the Mayo Clinic. In other words, if you are more muscular, your body will burn calories at a higher rate than a less muscular individual. Strength training such as lifting weights or working out with weights helps to build muscle mass, which helps boost your metabolism.

On the flip side, inactivity is a key culprit in muscle loss, as muscle tissue is replaced by fat tissue. Given that fat is far less active metabolically than muscle, this slows down the rate at which your body burns calories. As Peter D. Vash, M.D. notes: "Muscle burns calories while fat stores them."

Grazing
Eating smaller meals more often throughout the day, referred to as grazing, can help boost your metabolism. When you eat more frequently, it enables your body to burn calories at a more constant rate, which in turn increases your overall metabolic rate.

According to Nick Flynn, PhD, associate professor at Angelo State University in Texas, grazing helps to normalize your blood sugar levels, rather than to produce three large spikes, which happens when you eat three times a day. It also helps ward off snack attacks.

Rather than the standard three regular meals, eat 5 to 6 meals smaller, healthful meals a day eat. You should also start the day with breakfast. Scientific studies have shown that eating breakfast not only boosts metabolism, but also encourages physical activity.

Eat More Protein
Metabolism involves the transportation of molecules to different parts of the body. One of the things that enhance the transportation of molecules is an appropriate balance of amino acids, which are contained in protein. Including some protein in one`s meals will hence boost metabolism naturally.

References
1 Mayo Clinic: Weight Loss
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/metabolism/...
2 Cooking Light: A Complete Guide to Keeping Your Metabolism Strong and Healthy
http://www.cookinglight.com/healthy-living/h...
3. New York Times: Personal Health
http://www.nytimes.com/1983/08/03/garden/per...
4. Canadian Living: Top 5 ways to boost your metabolism naturally
http://www.canadianliving.com/health/nutriti...
5. The world`s Healthiest Foods: How Can I Boost My Metabolism?
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=fig...
6. World`s Healthiest Foods: Green Tea
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foo...
7. Journal of the American Dietetic Association
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-...
8. Metabolic effects of caffeine in humans: lipid oxidation or futile cycling?
www.ajcn.org/cgi/reprint/79/1/40.pdf

About the author

The Armchair Herbalist is a copywriter, turned insurance agent, turned freelance writer and published author. She has written numerous health- and business-related articles and eBooks for Demand Studios, Suite101, Bright Hub and LovetoKnow. She also writes for www.TopHomeRemedies.com, an alternative health website.
She is a self-professed armchair herbalist, and authored the book: 101 Herbal Tea Remedies: Healing Infusions and Decoctions from Nature's Own Pharmacy.