Fat is not Fate

You watch your brother shovel pizza three times a day and never gains a pound, while you watch your carbs, calories, and sweets and still haven’t lost an ounce. He must have a fast metabolism, you decide, while you seem to be cursed with a slow metabolism. Should you throw in the towel and forget about dieting?

No!  Your  metabolism  may be slow, but it’s not all your genes’ fault. And being fat is not your fate. Everyone -- no matter how old, overweight, or out of shape -- has the power to increase his metabolism.

Here’s how:

 To  increase your metabolism -- and keep it humming -- practice the following habits:

·         Build some brawn. Putting on just 5 to 10 pounds of lean muscle  will rev up your resting metabolism  by roughly 100 calories, each and every day 

·         Burn, baby, burn. Maximize the calories you burn after exercise by integrating high intensity intervals into your workout. Alternate 3 minutes of moderate intensity excersice with 30 seconds of all-out effort. You’ll burn another 100 to 200 calories this way, 

·         Hit the sack. Skimping on sleep can alter your metabolism, lack of sleep can decrease the number of calories your body burns just resting -- performing the basic necessities of life, like pumping blood, breathing and repairing damaged tissues. The rate of calories your body burns at rest represents about 60% to 75% of your total daily calorie burning, which makes slowing it through lack of sleep a serious roadblock to weight loss. 

·         Eat often. Berardi recommends eating every 2 to 3 hours. Each time you eat, you stimulate your metabolism for a short period of time, which means that the more often you eat, the more you’ll increase your metabolism. … But eat right. Frequent eating doesn’t mean snacking, or munching mindlessly, make each mini-meal complete -- with a serving of vegetables and a healthy source of protein like eggs, chicken, or nuts. Upping your intake of high-fiber foods like vegetables is one of the best ways to increase your metabolism

·         The straight-up truth. As for other much-hyped metabolism boosters like green tea, caffeine, and hot peppers, it seems you’re better off focusing your weight loss efforts elsewhere. A compound in green tea called ECGC and Capsaicin found in hot peppers has been shown to elevate metabolism by a small amount, but it’s not enough to make a difference in weight. Studies on caffeine  and its weight effects have had mixed results.

·         Let’s get physical. Never sit when you can stand, or stand still when you can walk. Thanks to desk jobs, family commitments, and a great lineup of must-see TV shows, most of us move less at ages 30, 40, and beyond than we did during our teens and  twenties. Regular periods of movement -- whether it’s a trip to the office water cooler or a stroll around the block after lunch -- nudges a sluggish metabolism into gear, lifting your spirits and shedding excess fat.