HOW TO SPEED UP THE METABOLISM? 17 PRACTICAL TIPS - GEOGRAFÍA - 2025

You may have inherited a slow metabolism, although that doesn't mean you can't do anything. In fact, research shows that certain habits can be used to burn calories more efficiently.

Learning how to speed up the metabolism is very important for anyone who wants to lose or maintain weight. However, the speed of metabolism depends on several factors.

For example, men tend to burn more calories than women, even when they rest. Other people inherit it genetically. On the other hand, after 40 it begins to gradually decrease.

Although you can't control your age, genetics, or gender, there are other ways to improve your metabolism. Before I start with the 10 ways to do it, I would like to answer several important questions.

What is metabolism?

Metabolism describes the chemical processes that take place in your body to keep you alive and make your organs work properly; breathe, repair cells, and digest food.

According to Wikipedia: "it is the set of biochemical reactions and physicochemical processes that occur in a cell and in the body."

These chemical processes require energy, and the minimum required by your body is called your base metabolic rate.

Do you gain weight from a slow metabolism?

Although people who want to lose weight may blame their slow metabolism, there are many studies internationally that have found no evidence for this.

In fact, the opposite appears to be true: overweight people may have a faster metabolism, due to the energy requirement required to maintain a fatter body.

Research has also shown that people do not remember well what they have eaten during the day. When asking what has been eaten, there is a tendency to report that much less has been ingested than has actually been done.

Therefore, it appears that eating too many calories is the real reason for gaining weight.

Tips to speed up metabolism

1-Exercise

By training twice a week, you reverse 50% of the lag in metabolism that inevitably comes with age. This is stated by Dr. Gary Hunter, a professor at the University of Alabama.

Aerobic exercise does not work your muscles, although it does boost your metabolism in the hours after training.

The key is to exercise more intensity, as it increases the rate of calorie burning at rest.

Visit this article to learn more about the benefits of exercise.

2-Lead an active life

Being constantly on the go and reducing the time you spend sitting will allow you to burn calories throughout the day.

Any extra exercise or movement will burn calories, therefore it is important to find times of the day when you move.

3-Increase intensity during time intervals

When you swim, run, or go for a walk, increase the intensity for 30-second intervals, then return to normal intensity.

This will help you consume more oxygen and make your mitochondria work to burn energy. In addition, it will increase the number of mitochondria in your body and its efficiency to burn energy.

4-Drink enough water

Your body needs water to process calories. If you are dehydrated, your metabolism can slow down.

In one study, men who drank eight or more glasses of water a day burned more calories than those who drank four.

To stay hydrated, drink a glass of water before each meal. Also, fruits contain a high water content, in addition to providing other benefits, such as these.

In this article you can learn about other benefits of water.

5-Eat snacks every 3-4 hours

Eating more often can help you lose weight.

By eating a lot with hours in between, your metabolism slows down. Eating a snack every 3-4 hours makes your metabolism speed up and you burn more calories throughout the day.

On the other hand, eating snacks-whole wheat sandwiches, fruits-makes you eat less at lunch or dinner.

6-Eat omega 3 fatty acids

Eating fish rich in omega 3 fatty acids allows you to increase the speed of your metabolism.

These acids balance blood sugar levels and reduce inflammation, helping to regulate metabolism. They can also help reduce resistance to the hormone leptin, which is related to the rate at which fat is burned.

Research with rats showed that those that ingested more fish oil lost more weight.

7-Work the bodybuilding

Your body is constantly burning calories, even when you do nothing.

That metabolic burning rate when you are at rest is higher in people who have more muscle, since muscles need more energy to maintain themselves than fat.

On average, exercising for 30-40 minutes twice a week for four months increases your metabolism by 100 calories a day.

8-Eat protein

Your body burns many more calories from protein than from fat or carbohydrate.

Therefore, substituting high-protein meals for high-fat ones can increase metabolism. Some sources of protein are: turkey, chicken, nuts, eggs, beans…

9-Get enough calcium and vitamin C

Recent research on obesity has shown that keeping calcium levels low can trigger the release of the same hormone that causes the body to retain fat. Choose low-fat products: salmon, natural yogurt…

On the other hand, vitamin C helps to absorb calcium, therefore it is important to eat foods such as mandarins, oranges or kiwis.

10-Eliminate alcohol

Drinking alcohol causes you to eat 200 more calories with each meal.

Also, the body burns the alcohol ingested first, meaning that the rest of the food is more likely to be stored as fat.

11-Green tea

Green tea is known for its antioxidant properties and in addition, its compound "catechin" can increase metabolism.

Research has suggested that catechins may enhance fat oxidation and thermogenesis; the production of energy by your body or heat, from digestion.

According to a study, by drinking five glasses of green tea a day, you will increase your energy expenditure by 90 calories a day.

12-Have breakfast

If you skip breakfast, your body goes into a kind of "starvation mode" and your metabolism slows down to conserve energy.

In a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, participants who ate 22-25% of calories at breakfast gained less weight than those who only ate 11% at breakfast.

13-Spicy Ingredients

Spicy food has natural chemicals that can increase your metabolic rate.

The effect is probably temporary, although if you eat them more often, the benefits will increase and be progressive.

14-Choose organic food

Researchers from Canada found that people who ate more foods that used pesticides had more disruptions in the activity of the mitochondria and the thyroid, thus causing the metabolism to stagnate.

15-Avoid eating too little

You don't have to eat too much or too little. The problem is that some people go from overeating to hardly eating at all. Eating less than 1200-1800 calories a day is detrimental to speed up your metabolic rate.

Although you may lose weight more quickly, you will not be nourishing yourself properly. In addition, by losing muscle you will decrease your metabolism, causing your body to burn fewer calories after the diet.

16-Get enough sleep

Some people need more sleep than others, it is about sleeping the hours with which you feel rested and energized.

Research has shown that not getting enough sleep can result in a slowdown in metabolism.

17-Control stress

Stress releases a hormone called cortisol that causes your body to maintain fat in the event of a stressful situation.

Practicing yoga, meditation, or sports reduce stress.

And do you know of other ways to increase the speed of your metabolism? Have you managed to lose weight? I am interested in your opinion! Thank you.