Boost Metabolism

I've heard so many people whinning about how their metabolism is slow and that's the reason they are not loosing weight and want to Boost Metabolism.

They read too many books and sit on their rear and wonders why they are not able to Boost Metabolism.

So before I even go into how to Boost Metabolism up, first you should know some basics

What is metabolism?

Metabolism is the rate at which your body burns calories to sustain life

I should also note that your body, yes yours, burns calories 24 hours a day, everyday ~ regardless of whether or not you workout.

Remember that your body needs energy all the time, even while you're asleep and that is why skipping meals is the absolute worst thing you can do if your goal is to lose weight (body fat).

Before we go any further let's talk about what affects metabolism...

What affects metabolism?

Activity levels? Your Thyroid? Age?

Any idea? It's muscle tissue! The more muscle you have the more calories you burn regardless of how active you are, how old you are, etc.

It's live tissue and it's there working for you and burning calories 24 hours a day ~ each and every day!

Here's a list of some of the factors affecting metabolism in order of greatest impact to least:

  • Muscle tissue (you already know why this is on the top of the list)
  • Meal frequency (the longer you go between meals the more your metabolism slows down to conserve energy)
  • Activity level (important but doesn't make any difference if you don't match your eating to your expenditure)
  • Food choices (ex. low-fat diets tend to result in poor hormone production which leads to a slower metabolism)
  • Hydration (over 70% of bodily functions take place in water ~ not enough water causes all your systems to slow down and unnecessary stress)
  • Genetics, of course you can some time blame your genetics for this... but hey you still have hope to win the battle against buldge
  • Stress (stress also can slow metabolism by placing extra stress and strain on numerous systems. plus, many people tend to overeat when "stressed out")

Why does it slow down?

There are lots of reasons. But I think it slows down due to inactivity of your muscle tissue.

Here is the basic formula to Boost Metabolism:

Stop the storage of new fat

Ok isn't this the most obvious of the issues? yes. First and foremost You should stop the storage of new fat. Then we'll think of getting rid of old. How you do it?

Proper Diet + Proper Exercise. We don't get fat due to a lack of exercise, we get fat because we supply the body with more calories than it needs at a given time.

Attack the existing fat

This requires a combination approach consisting of stable blood sugar/energy levels, and progressive cardiovascular/aerobic exercise and strength training.

If your blood sugar levels is fluctuating too much, you'll be more prone to fat.

Here are some general guidelines on how you can make your exercise progressive and productive to Boost Metabolism:

  • Strength training, This tops my list. There's nothing like building new muscles which will always burn that extra fat.
  • Change exercises frequently (every 2-4 weeks).
  • Cardiovascular training: Exercises that Pumps up and strengthen your heart, I prefer Fast sprints of 8-10 seconds.
  • Perform intervals : Interval training too helps