When it comes to losing weight, your metabolism can be your best friend or your worst enemy. A fast metabolism helps you burn more calories, but a slow one can make losing even a modest amount of weight and keeping it off seem close to impossible. But if you’re one of the many folks whose metabolism is slower than ice-cold molasses, don’t despair. Here are a few tips for helping you speed up your metabolism:
1 – Eat healthy, low calorie foods. Yes, I know it’s been repeated a thousand times over, but it isn’t really how much you eat that makes you gain weight, it’s WHAT you eat. Fruits, leafy green vegetables and lean meats are the way to go for losing weight and boosting your metabolism so that you can keep it off.
2 – Build muscle mass. While you don’t have to become the next Mr. or Ms. Universe, increasing your muscle mass in proportion to your total body weight is essential for increasing your metabolic rate and burning fat. As most everyone knows by now, muscle tissue burns more calories than fat tissue, resulting in faster weight loss with the same amount of caloric intake. I recommend that you concentrate on your upper arms and legs since they contain the largest muscles in the body (which means they’ll burn the most calories). Abdominal exercises are fine as well, but you can forget about getting a set of “6-pack abs” with abdominal exercises alone.
3 – Get plenty of exercise. When muscles work, they burn calories. Even better, they continue burning calories for some time even after you have finished your exercise routine! What kinds of exercise is best for weight loss and control? Well, some experts claim that a cardio routine such as walking or biking several times a week is well worth the time invested. Others insist that a strength routine such as lifting weights is best. So which group of experts is right? The answer is BOTH of them! Building muscle mass is essential for boosting metabolism and controlling weight (see #2 above), but a disciplined cardio routine will keep the rest of your body healthy and help those calorie burning muscles work their magic even faster.
4 – Keep at it. Healthy living isn’t a short term proposition. To the contrary, for it to be effective you must make it a lifetime endeavor. Studies have shown that yo-yo dieting and weight loss/regain cycles are actually more detrimental to one’s health than simply remaining a little overweight in the first place.
In summary, boosting metabolism and losing / controlling weight can only be achieved long-term by making a lifetime commitment to eat right and exercise. There are no shortcuts (at least there are no safe ones).
About the author: Vince Tappert rode the weight loss roller coaster for years before having a stroke at the relatively young age of 41. After his recovery he embarked on a serious weight loss and fitness routine incorporating everything he talked about in this article, and today he is quite fit and healthy even as he approaches his 67th year on planet earth.