Nutrition Hacks - Metabolism Boosting Foods!

To put it in the simplest of terms, metabolism describes the continuous processes that occur inside our bodies to keep our organs functioning normally and just to overall keep us alive! A healthy metabolism means that such processes take place within us at a healthy rate – we rely on our metabolism for all kinds of processes, from breathing, to digesting what we eat, to even blood circulation!

Age, sedentary lifestyles and unhealthy eating are all matters which can have a detrimental effect on our metabolism, causing it to slow down. Luckily, there are foods that can actually boost our metabolism!

Keep reading as we discuss what our metabolism actually is, how we can support it and some great metabolism-boosting foods that we should all include in our diets!

So, What Actually Is Metabolism?

As mentioned, metabolism basically refers to all the chemical reactions that take place in order to maintain the living state of cells. These processes work by converting the food we consume into energy. This energy is then used make sure that these processes continuously take place! The minimum amount of energy our bodies require to carry out these chemical processes is known as the basal metabolic rate (BMR). If you’re looking to find out what you’re BMR is, there’s plenty of online calculators that you can check out!

Pretty much every process that’s undertaken by each and every one of us, from simply breathing to moving to our bodies around is facilitated by metabolism!

Now, metabolism is closely linked to our nutritional intake and the various nutrients that we take in. For those us wanting to lose weight, speeding up the rate of our metabolic processes can support us with reaching our fitness goals. As we get older, our metabolism slows down and this is something can be more noticeable for us women as men tend to usually have  faster metabolism than us. So, it’s super important to make sure that we support our metabolism through a healthy nutritional intake combined with an active lifestyle.

Traps To Avoid

There are several factors that can slow your metabolism significantly, this is something that can cause weight gain as well as various health issues. So, what are some lifestyle choices that you should avoid if you’re looking to stay away from metabolism damage?

Living a sedentary life is not only damaging for your fitness goals but it’s also pretty rough on your metabolism. Being insufficiently active can noticeably reduce the amount of calories that you burn, this is something that can lead to your body facing difficulty when trying to break down fats and sugars.

So, if you’re looking to actively boost your metabolism…get up and move!

Overindulging in sugary drinks is a massive no-no if you’re trying to keep your metabolism in a healthy state! A regular consumption of sugary beverages can certainly slow down your metabolism…it’s also been linked with increasing the risk of diabetes and insulin resistance.

Yep, a calorie deficit can indeed help you to be on your way with reaching your weight-loss goals but a deficit that’s big can actually be damaging. When a person significantly lowers their calorie intake, their body can sense that food sources are limited…this can then encourage the body to lower the rate at which it burns calories. So, ensure to do your research and to approach your fitness goals in a way that’s both healthy and also controlled.

Right, now let’s take a look at some foods that we can include in our diet for boosting that metabolism!

Metabolism Boosting Foods

As we’ve mentioned, there are certain lifestyle factors that we can avoid with the aim of protecting our metabolism. However, we can actually also directly boost our metabolism through what we put in our bodies! Let’s take a look at some metabolism boosting foods that we can add to our diets:

Eggs

Eggs are great…they’re low in calories, high in protein and they also contain fundamental nutrients that can benefit our bodies massively. It’s due to the thermic effect that eggs can speed up our metabolism…and what is the thermic effect you may ask?

The thermic effect is the amount of energy that’s needed to digest food and foods that are rich in protein like eggs, require more energy. A by-product of this energy using process is a positive impact on your metabolism!

Avocado

Avocados are a super food when it comes to nutrients…they contain all 9 essential amino acids, omega-3 fatty acids and they’re also rich in B vitamins as well as vitamin E and K. Along with a serving of around 5g of protein per avocado, the content of this food is truly brilliant for metabolism boosting!

Cottage Cheese

Cheese? You may wondering, why a cheese since cheeses can be naturally rich in fat…well, cottage cheese is actually pretty unique as a cheese when it comes to its nutritional content. It’s low in carbs and low in fat whilst being rich in protein! A serving of cottage cheese each day can be great for your metabolism.

Spinach

The boost that spinach can give to your metabolism is mainly down to its iron content. The iron in spinach can support your body with assisting the transportation of oxygen to your muscles. This also aids fat loss! Spinach has been linked with weight loss and is a common part of the diets of women worldwide who are on their weight-loss journeys!

Salmon

It’s suggested that eating a cold-water fish like salmon can increase your resting metabolic rate (RMR). Salmon is rich two types of omega-3 fatty acids- EPA and DHA. These nutrients actually play a role when it comes to metabolism regulation. Furthermore, salmon is protein-rich and is a food that can keep you fuller for longer!

The Bottom Line

So there we have it, our metabolism pretty much determines our life! With this in mind, it’s essential that we all play our parts in doing what we can, both physically and through our nutritional intake to support our bodies in undertaking vital chemical processes in a manner that’s healthy and beneficial!