Why do some people eat a lot but never gain weight? ‘Metabolism’ is the reason why they can eat everything without gaining weight, while others eat less and still gain weight. 

WHAT IS METABOLISM?

Metabolism is the process by which food is broken down to release energy. Yourmetabolic rate reflects how much energy your body requires to carry out its basic functions like breathing, eating, sleeping, digesting food and more. If your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is high, you burn more calories, even whileresting. Your metabolism is determined by multiple factors, including genetics, age,gender, thyroid problems and hormone levels. Women have a slower metabolism than men because women naturally have a higher body fat percentage. 

LIFESTYLE RELATED REASONS FOR SLOW METABOLISM:

  • Lack of exercise 
  • Low muscle mass
  • Irregular eating habits
  • Eating too much fat
  • Crash dieting
  • Protein deficiency
  • Too much alcohol
  • Stress and lack of sleep

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR METABOLISM?

‘Increasing the metabolism’ is the holy grail of weight watchers. It is a quick, safe, healthy, natural and effective way to permanent fat loss. Here’show you can do it:

(1) Start Weight Training

BMR is much higher in people with more muscle. 

- The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn even when you are at rest. 

- Every pound of muscle uses about 6 calories a day, just to sustain itself,while each pound of fat burns only 2 calories. 

- So start lifting weights and build muscles in order to improve your metabolism.

(2) Add HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) to Weight Training 

Do 30 minutes Run-Walk workout: Walk for 2 minutes then run for 1 minute.Keep doing this for 30 minutes. 

- Some other HIIT activities are sprint intervals, treadmill intervals, kickboxing, jump rope, resistance sprints, football and tennis.

- HIIT burns more calories in short period of time and improves your BMR.  

(3) Eat Every 2-3 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 will increase your metabolism.

- Eating small meals every 2 to 3 hours feeds muscle and burns fat.

- Frequent eating doesn’t mean eating junk food.- Make each mini-meal complete with a serving of vegetables and a healthy source of protein.

(4) Eat More Protein

Include healthy sources of protein in your meals such as lentils (Indiandal), whey protein, spinach (palak), chickpeas (channa), kidney beans (rajma),broccoli, cheese, paneer, soybeans, yogurt, milk, lean beef, turkey, fish and egg whites. 

- It helps you build muscles.

(5) Eat Metabolism Boosters 

Eat a tablespoon of chili and pepper in your food to increase your metabolism. 

- Add ginger in food to speed up the body’s digestion process. 

- Have a green tea 3-5 times a day. It can burn up to 80 extra calories with out any effort.

WHAT YOU SHOULD AVOID?

(1) Crash Dieting

The worst thing you can do to your metabolism is ‘starve yourself’. Although crash diets may help you lose weight, but you will lose muscles mass as well.The lower your muscle mass, the slower your metabolism.

(2) Late Night Eating 

When you sleep, your metabolism slows down because your body doesn’t need energy. It turns any unneeded food into fat. 

(3) Too much cardio

It will actually burn your muscle tissues. A better way to boost metabolism through exercise is to start a strength-training routine along with cardio.