With all the chaos life brings, demanding jobs, multiple jobs, working on your craft while working these multiple jobs; falling into relationships, relationships falling apart, relationships mending; trying to knock off everything on your to-do list... you find yourself with little time to hit the gym as life presses against you. And as your weight goes up, there needs be another solution for slashing the unwanted weight if you can't cram a full gym session into your schedule. Perhaps, speed up your metabolism instead? While there are things outside of our control that factor into how our metabolism functions, such as our age and genetics, there are a few tricks. Read below and check out these five different options for boosting your metabolism.
1. Stretch it out. If you don't have enough time to hit the gym, try a few moves on a mat in your room. Some poses? Twisted Chair Pose. Here's a yoga position that uses every muscle in your body. The benefit? It boosts circulation in your body. By the way your body twists, incorporating all muscle parts, not only are you stretching, but waking up all those tiny muscles, which aid in digestion, says Shape.com. Place your feet together and sit back as though you were sitting in a chair, almost the way you would do a squat. Bring your hands flat together, and while keeping your chest raised, bring your right elbow to the left knee. Hold for forty-five seconds, then spread your arms open, releasing, and repeat on the other side.
2. Drink Up. When in doubt, reach for water. According to Men's Health, drinking six cups of cold water can add up to dropping 50 calories per day, which according to their studies is five pounds a year. Another article showed that drinking water increases the metabolic rate by 30 percent. Webmd.com recommends munching on fruits and veggies for snacks as these foods contain water, a quick and fun way to fill up on H20. The flip side of not drinking water is dehydration, in which your metabolism actually slows down, according to Health.com. Conclusion: grab a bottle of water when you're thirsty for a drink, and for losing weight.
3. Breakfast in Bed. Yes, it's true, eating breakfast does speed up your metabolism, but you have to reach for the right foods. Go for foods with B-vitamins: riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pantothenic acid (B5), biotin (B7), and cobalamin (B12). All of these B vitamins target the metabolism, helping breakdown body fat, according to aminoacid-studies.com. Try egg yolk for breakfast, which is rich in biotin (B7), and add a cup of black coffee. A study conducted proved those who drank caffeinated coffee had a sixteen percent higher metabolic rate than those who drank decaf, according to Health.com. Get yourself into the cycle of making breakfast every day, because eating healthier is a lifestyle change, and these small lifestyle changes are what allow us keep off the weight consistently.
4. Walk it Off. If you don't have time to hit the gym, get off the subway one stop earlier every day and walk the extra fifteen minutes' home. Not only will you get in a burst of exercise, but you also have a destination that you must reach. If you don't live off a subway, simply make it part of your daily routine to walk for fifteen minutes. Not only is walking a form of cardiovascular exercise, but according to The New Yorker, it also improves memory and attention. According to Livestrong, women walking for nine hours a week had an increased metabolic rate, as well as a lower body-fat percentage. Shake it off while you walk it off.
5. Spice Up Your Life. Reach for the spicy foods next time you dine. The reason spicy foods speed up your metabolism is due to one ingredient: capsaicin. Capsaicin is the reason you're crying and guzzling water; it is the source of heat in all those spicy foods, peppers, jalapenos, habaneros, you get the idea. The capsaicin gives a temporary spike to the metabolism. Percentage wise, it gives it an eight percent rise then the average person's metabolism. While it may be a short lived effect, it's definitely a fast way to get your metabolism running.