8 Tips to Rev up your Metabolism

So you want to lose weight, but no matter what you do, you just can't seem to push through that plateau. Here I am going to give you 8 Tips to rev up your metabolism.

Metabolism is defined as: The chemical processes occurring within a living cell or organism that are necessary for the maintenance of life. In metabolism some substances are broken down to yield energy for vital processes while other substances, necessary for life, are synthesized.

So it makes total sense to make sure it is functioning optimally. (If you have a thyroid dysfunction, please continue to consult your doctor)

You may see those thin girls and guys that can eat whatever they want and never gain weight. They have a fast metabolism right?  Or perhaps you see those people who eat one greasy food or sweet pastry and it goes right to thier hips or stomach. A slow metabolism? Perhaps, please read on!
A fast metabolism will help you burn those calories that are holding you back from losing the weight that just doesn't want to go away. Here are the 8 tips to rev up your metabolism.

Tip #1 Water. 
Are you drinking enough? Most of us are not. There is that old rule of 8 glasses a day. Sure 8 glasses is a good start, but it also depends solely on your own body. Not everyone is a standard 8 cups a day.  Easy formula to figure out your required water intake is this: Take your weight in pounds and divide by 2. That number is then the amount of ounces you should be consuming on a daily basis.  Example: you are 120 pounds. Divided in half is 60. Therefore 60 ounces. 60 ounces divided by 8 ounces per cup equals 7 and 1/2 cups of water per day.  Water is very important.  We need water to make sure our organs and body function are performing optimally.  Please drink your water.  Adding lemon to it will also increse your chances because the lemon cuts through fat.  Yes it helps attack fat deposits and belps to break them down so the body can dipose of them. Another great idea is to make sure that water is COLD.  Cold water makes your body have to burn calories to warm it up.  Think about it, our internal temperature is pretty hot so when we introduce a cold liquid into it, it has to work double duty to bring it to the same temperature as our bodies are in order to process it.

Tip#2 Vitamin D
I know that those of us who live in colder climates, and have seasonal changes we tend to hibernate quite a alot. Well Vitamin D mainly comes from the sun and with winter we have some grey days and we tend to stay indoors.  Please consider taking a Vitamin D supplement, whether it is in a capsule form or one of the many added minerals to your nutriton support shake. Vitamin D, and lack of it makes us hungry, and slows down weightloss.

Tip#3 Strength Training
So you love cardio, running, power walking.  These are all great exercises that are perfect for our heart, but they don't help with adding lean muscle to your body.  Lean muscle that is buit from strength and resistance training helps to burn fat continuously.(even when you sleep)  So pull out those dumbells or resistance bands and get to those reps.

Tip#4 Eat
Yes I said eat.  Do your best to not go without a meal or snack more than 4 hours. You should be eating breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, and dinner.  I don;t mean huge meals either, that is where portion control comes into play but thats another post.  Keeping our body functioning with energy from food helps to keep our blood sugar levels maintained.  When we have a drop in blood sugar we tend to overeat becasue we are in need of a boost. That is why so many of us reach for that mid day chocolate bar or coffee at 3 o'clock.  One more thing, yes you should be eating regularily throughout the day but make sure to stay away from those midnight snacks.  Eating before bed will thwart all efforts.  When we sleep our bodies are in restoration mode not assimulation mode. Please ensure there is no food in your stomach for at least 8 - 12 houurs.  If you need something after dinner, try a herbal tea it will satisfy your need for something in your mouth and with the many benefits of herbal teas consider it a bonus.

Tip#5 Coffee or Green Tea
Go ahead and drink it. I know we hear all the time to cut caffiene out of our diets and though it is an ideal plan, caffiene actually helps you lose weight.  it speeds up our metabolism.  Just don't douse that coffee with sugars and creams and fancy latte's that will just impeed the effect and make you crash from the sugar rush, not to mention the fats that come with some of those.  Green tea is another perfect drink.  So many benefits and has been proven to keep that metabolism running high. (Green tea does have caffiene in it naturally but you can buy the de caf variety but I don't recommended it because with that "decaf" comes extra processing at the manufacturing plant and with that I am sure the benefits and natural boosters with it are lost.)

Tip #6 Sleep
There is evidence that proves lack of sleep results in overweight people.  make sure you are getting a minimum of 8 hours.  Sleep is one of the best things for your body. Restoration occurs and having a lack of it will slow your metabolism down severely.  It also makes you hungry and throws your hormones in disarray. If you need a cat nap and can take it, then do that.  Sleep is my favourite.

Tip#7 Learn to De-Stress
I know it is hard. With our ever growing responsibilities and being under pressure it is hard to not be under stress but with stress comes a hormorne that is secreted called "cortisol"  When thats gets activated, your body suddently goes into defense mode and holds onto the extra fat. It is your bodies way of protecting itself from danger.  I know, the fat isn't a good thing but to your body and that cortisol secretion, the fat won't go anywhere.  It's going to hold onto everything you got until you can relax.  I encourage you to take a look at ways you can calm your nerves and relieve some stress.

Tip#8 Eat organic and real food.
Okay so maybe you are soing all of the above but still can't get your metabolism revved up. Perhaps look at the food you are eating. Over processed and high use of pesticides on our food, once ingested our body will once again secrete another chemical to protect itself. This is where your endocrine system comes into play and  those pesticides are considered endocrine disruptors. Obesogens are released. Those creepers I like to call them encourage the body to store fat and they also can turn normal cells into more fat cells. So please be aware.

I hope these 8 Tips to Rev up your Metabolism have helped you.  I know it is always a battle to get our bodies to cooperate with us, especially when we want to lose weight. We just have to listen to them. Give them what they truly want and it will return the favour ten fold.
To your health and wellness.