So I was on the road from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. yesterday at a convention, but you better believe I was prepared. My purse was STOCKED with all sorts of clean snacks to get me through the day without squashing my metabolism or giving in to less than healthy alternatives.
This has been one of the biggest determining factors of my success...making sure that I'M in control of my metabolism..not the other way around.. I can't stress enough how IMPORTANT it is to eat HEALTHY little bits every couple hours.. learn it, live it...
Here are some important factors that determine if you'll have a jack rabbit of a metabolism or a sluggish one!
Muscle tissue! You've probably heard it a million times "muscle burns fat!" we'll its true.. More muscle tissue = faster metabolism! This is why you'll see such drastic results when you do a program like p90x when your used to walking or jogging on a treadmill.
Tip: Mix it up for results! Mix up your workouts to keep seeing results. If you do the same amount of time at the same speed on a treadmill every day.. Your body gets used to it and goes on autopilot.. Therefore it's no longer WORKING.
Hydration:
What can you expect when so much if our bodies is made up of water.. The metabolism (along with pretty much EVERY other function of our bodies) NEED the water to work.. Always have a water bottle on you because by the time you FEEL thirsty your body is ALREADY quite dehydrated. Dry lips, skin and mouth are a sign that you are mildly-moderately dehydrated..but when you feel THIRSTY, you have crossed over into EXTREME dehydration...not good.
Calculate how much water you should be drinking here: http://nutrition.about.com/library/blwatercalculator.htm
Tip: Having a glass of ice water immediately upon waking up will zap your metabolism into hyper-speed! It will also help wake you up and get the rest of your body ready for the day by replenishing :)
Breakfast:
It says it right there.. You need to break your fast! Breakfast wakes up your metabolism and lets your body know that you ARE going to feed it that day :) if your body doesn't think it's going to get the fuel it needs, it'll hold on to all it has and store it as reserved energy.. Aka fat! What you DON'T want to break your fast with though is sugary simple carbs...ya I'm talking to you Lucky Charms and Eggo lovers.. This will actually make you feel hungrier throughout the day and lead to over eating and poor nutrition.
Frequency of Eating:
You need to eat OFTEN and as consistently as possible. Just as you would if you didn't know the next time you'd be fed, your body goes into starvation mode when you go for hours on end without feeding it. Starvation mode=fat storage for survival. Worse yet, when your bodies not fueled properly it cannibalizes your muscle! Hey.. You worked hard for that muscle.. Don't lose it by skipping meals! This is why you always hear that in order to lose weight you need to eat MORE!
Stress:
Yep stress slows down your metabolism. The best solution for this? Blow off some steam by getting those endorphins flowing! I'm talking working out here ;)
Choose your food WISELY:
Here's something surprising. .. "low-fat" diets can actually KEEP you from losing weight! Healthy fats are vital for basic bodily functions and they keep your metabolism high! Now notice I say HEALTHY fats.. I'm talking nuts and avocados here.. Not doughnuts :) don't overdo these foods though.. Healthy fats are VERY calorie dense so mind your portions :)
Now that you know some of the secrets..
Are you going to have a metabolism that works TOWARDS your goals, or against them??
