Metabolism Booster

Before you think of boosting your metabolism it is important to understand what is metabolism.



Metabolism is a process in which our body combines oxygen with nutrients to produce energy which is needed by our body to maintain normal bodily functions. In simple words metabolism is the rate at which body burns the calories. Metabolism rate significantly differs from one person to another.



Two individuals with same activity level, diet, weight and lifestyle can gain or lose weight at different rates depending on the differences in their metabolism. Certain factors influence your metabolism and these include –

• Age – as a person ages rate of metabolism slows down (approximately 5% per decade after 40 years of age).
• Heredity – your previous generations can influence your rate of metabolism.
• Sex – it is seen that men burn calories faster compared to women.
• Lean body mass proportion – higher the muscle mass, higher the metabolism.
• Thyroid disorder – this is rare but thyroid gland problems can influence the rate of metabolism.

Some of the factors cannot be modified, while some can be easily changed to boost your metabolism. Try the following ways to boost your metabolism:

Small meals and regular interval – Keeping a large gap between 2 meals can switch your body into starvation mode which in turn can hold on as many calories as possible and store them as fat.



So to boost your metabolism it is important to have small meals at regular intervals. Choices of food made are equally important when it comes to boosting the metabolism. For example choose whole cereals in stead of refined ones or choose a whole orange instead of orange juice.

Water – Make sure to drink appropriate amount of water in order to encourage your liver to boost metabolism instead of hoarding it. Remember many times when you feel hungry and crave food, actually you are thirsty, depriving your body from water can actually hoard calories.

Aerobic exercise and weight training – Aerobic exercise is a temporary metabolism booster. But muscle burns more calories than fat, so in the long run it is important to build the muscles with weight training. Certain foods for example celery or grape fruit are considered ‘fat burning’ foods and have been studies for their potential to increase metabolism. However there is no significant evidence on these foods how they affect metabolism; moreover a brisk walk for 30-40 minutes will help burn much more calories by boosting the metabolism than chewing celery.





Smoking – Nicotine present in cigarettes is a good appetite stimulant and metabolic booster but please avoid smoking as a method for boosting metabolism or weight loss as this benefit of smoking far outweighs its health hazards. Before making any major changes in your diet or lifestyle including exercise consult a registered dietitian or a specialist.