Increasing Your Metabolism

Want to know how to increase your metabolism?

There are natural ways to maximize your metabolism which we will explore in a bit, but first we must understand what metabolism is.

Your metabolism is the process of how your body takes what you consume through food and drinks, and converts it into energy for daily life functions.

What makes up your metabolic rate is your age, gender, height, weight, and genetics. The biological factors that make up metabolism we cannot change, but there are still other ways to increase your metabolic rate.

Our bodies burn energy in a few different ways:

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): Your BMR is the amount of energy your body uses to maintain every day bodily functions such as keeping your heart pumping, lungs working, muscles contracting and other systems in the body.

Thermic Effect of Food: Your body uses energy to digest the food we eat.

Activity: The body uses energy for exercise and movement.

Of these 3 sources of energy use, the one we have the most control over and will have the greatest metabolic effect is activity.  

The more active you are, the more energy you burn. And if you make regular strength training part of that activity, the increase in lean muscle mass from strength training will then in turn help you burn even more energy during activity and also increase your BMR because the increase in muscle tissue requires more energy. That is why regular strength training is one of the best ways to increase your metabolism.

Another way to increase the amount of energy you use is through NEAT, or non-exercise activity thermogenesis. This is activity that is outside of planned exercise. Things like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, parking further away from where you are going to walk a bit more, cleaning the house or walking your dog. Basically, the more you do to get your body moving in any way, the better.

Stress and lack of recovery time can have a negative effect on your metabolism. Be sure you are getting enough rest between workouts, refueling properly and getting enough sleep to keep your metabolism working well too.

Metabolism is a complex thing but try implementing some of these lifestyle habits to increase your metabolism, burn more energy and live a healthier lifestyle!