1) Strength Train.
Strength training/lifting weights increases lean muscle mass. The more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories you'll burn throughout the day, even if your most strenuous activity is brushing your teeth. This is true because lean muscle mass requires more energy (calories) to sustain itself than fat does. This doesn't mean that you have to look like Hercules to sustain a heightened metabolic rate, strength training can be done to tone a body as well as to add size. your own individual goals will determine how you strength train. If you have any questions about strength training, be sure to stop in and talk to one of our certified personal trainers.
2) Cardiovascular Exercise.
Among the many benefits of cardiovascular exercise, (running, walking, biking, aerobics, etc.) is the fact that sustained cardiovascular exercise (for 20 minutes or more) in your target training zone (65-85% of your maximum heart rate) increases your core body temperature. This in turn also raises your metabolism. What's more, once your core body temperature is raised by sustained cardiovascular exercise; your metabolic rate will stay elevated for up to 3 hours after your workout.
3) Always eat breakfast.
Eating breakfast gives you energy, raises your metabolic rate and gets your body burning calories and fat right away in the morning. If you're a breakfast skipper, you've probably noticed that you're not too hungry until late in the day, yet when you do eat breakfast you're already starving by lunchtime. That's because when you skip breakfast your body produces "ketones" which suppress your appetitie. The problem is that once you finally begin to eat, the effect of the ketones disappears and all of a sudden you're ravenous and can't eat enough. You can end up eating more at night than you would have eaten during a whole day of balanced eating.
During sleep, your metabolism slows way down. By skipping breakfast, you keep your metabolism in "low gear," since it doesn't kick into "high gear" until you eat. When you do finally eat, your slowed metabolism has a harder time breaking down all of the food, and you end up storing more of it as fat. Eating breakfast revs up your metabolism in the morning so that your body burns fat and calories all day long.
4) Eat regular meals and snacks throughout the day.
Recommended: 3 meals a day and 1-2 snacks per day. Eating regular meals and snacks not only boosts your metabolism; it also keeps your appetite under control. Your appetite is influenced by the level of blood sugar in your body. If your eating patterns are erratic, your blood sugar level will have roller coaster highs and lows. Every time your blood sugar level drops, it sends a signal to your brain that says, "Feed me. I need energy." It is hard to control your appetite when this happens because your mind is saying, "I want it," and your body is saying, "I NEED IT." If you meet your physical needs by eating the right thing at the right time, your appetite will be well controlled.
If you are trying to lose weight and are not used to eating frequently, you may be wondering how you can lose weight by eating so often. Those extra snacks will be burned. Eating regular meals and snacks keeps your blood sugar levels even and your metabolism geared up.
