Before you say goodbye to pasta (and all the good things in life) by going paleo or gluten-free, keep reading. These tips will train your body to burn calories more quickly and efficiently without displacing your favorite sweets and treats. It’s almost too good to be true.
Build Up Muscle
Muscle not only weighs more than fat, but also burns energy even when you’re sitting or laying down. The average thirty-year-old woman who trains 30-40 minutes twice a week will increase her resting metabolism by 100 calories a day.
Photo: Rebecca Block
Work Out a Little Harder
The next time you do your cardio workout, increase your intensity for 30-second intervals and then return to your normal speed. Your cells will have to burn more sugars and fats to power these fast bursts of speed.
Make Room for More Omega 3’s
Omega-3 fatty acids balance blood sugar and help reduce inflammation, which make sure your body gets a steady supply of the nutrients it needs in the right amounts.
Photo: Rebecca Block
Drink Green Tea
Green tea is full of antioxidants, improves circulation and reduces cholesterol. Recently, researchers have been finding that the active ingredient, catechin, may also increase your basal metabolic rate.
Don’t Slash Calories
This may go against everything you know about dieting, but if you cut out too many calories, your body assumes that there isn’t enough sustenance available and stops burning fat in order to conserve energy.
Eat Breakfast!
Eating a nutrient-rich morning meal, within the first hour of getting out of bed, literally wakes up your metabolism. Oatmeal, almonds and whole-wheat toast are great and healthy choices.
Photo: Rebecca Block
Eat Healthy Snacks Throughout the Day
Snacking throughout the day may come along with a negative connotation, but if those snacks are fruits, vegetables and other health foods, it can help you consume fewer calories overall.
Avoid Trans Fat
Trans fats slow down your body’s ability to burn fat and can also lead to insulin resistance and inflammation, symptoms associated with Type 2 Diabetes.
Go ORGANIC
Non-organic foods may contain pesticides that block your metabolism by interfering with your thyroid, the organ that determines how fast your body runs.
Photo: Rebecca Block
Protein, Protein, Protein!
Your body digests protein slower than it does fats or carbs, so you feel full longer (this is especially true when you have protein-rich foods for breakfast).
Use these articles to help you out: