How to Boost Your Metabolism for Weight Loss

From http://kriscarr.com/blog/boost-metabolism-weight-loss/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=metabolism-blog

So many awesome things happen as we get older: we get to know ourselves better (our likes and dislikes), we develop those gorgeous smile lines that map the joy we’ve experienced and hopefully we stop sweating the small stuff as much—at least that’s the goal. But as we grow in wisdom, sometimes we also grow in our waistlines. Suddenly, there’s belly fat that’s hard to shake and more cushion in the tuchas.

The truth is, our metabolism slows as we age. And sometimes, no matter how hard we try, the scale doesn’t budge. While there are many reasons for this, including hormonal changes, dwindling muscle strength and escalating stress, there are also some pretty good solutions.

We all know that what we eat and drink and how much we’re exercising impact the numbers on the scale. But, there are other ways too, and I have a list of tips you may not have considered below. So before you run out and buy another pair of Spanx, read this.

Understanding Your Metabolism

Basically, metabolism is the process your body uses to convert calories into energy (we often refer to this as “burning calories”). Whether you know it or not, your body is always burning calories. Even when you’re just sitting around watching Gilmore Girls for the third time, your body is using energy to run the inner show that goes on behind the scenes—stuff like keeping your ticker running, blood circulating, repairing your cells, breathing, and the list goes on. This accounts for about eighty percent of your metabolism (study).

In addition to the calories burned just to keep your body functioning each day, you also burn them while digesting food (which takes a lot of energy)—and of course during exercise and any physical activity (folding laundry, painting your nails, even tweeting!). So, that’s your metabolism in a nutshell. Some of it’s within your control and some of it’s not.

As I mentioned earlier, your metabolism doesn’t always stay the same throughout your life. For most women, metabolism drops about 1-2% per decade after age 25. So to put that into perspective, continuing to eat the same foods and exercise the same amount could mean gaining about 2 pounds per year after age 25. No biggie for a year or two, but after 10 or 20 years, a noticeable amount of extra weight may be hanging around.

This is when boosting your metabolism can really help—because you shouldn’t have to starve yourself to attain your (realistic) weight loss goals. In fact, if you do, there’s a good chance you could actually damage your metabolism. And once it’s hurt, it’s hard to heal. Not impossible, but not easy.

So, let’s say you want to lose weight in a healthy way. You’re being mindful of your portions and what you’re eating, and you’re exercising too, but you’re still not losing weight! What do you do?

Try revving up your metabolism with the strategies below. They may be just what you need to tip the scale in your favor.

8 Ways to Boost Your Metabolism & Support Weight Loss

1. Spice up your meals: Adding a spicy kick to your food on a regular basis can increase your metabolism (and make your meals even tastier). Try adding hot peppers, chili peppers and even red pepper flakes to your foods throughout the day (study).

2. Eat more plant protein: Protein has a greater thermic effect than carbs or fats (so digesting protein burns more calories!). And when you choose plant-based protein, you get these metabolism-boosting benefits without the potential drawbacks of eating more animal protein (for example, increased heart disease risk and cancer risk). Try adding a serving of beans, lentils, hemp seeds, chia seeds or some of the other rich sources of plant protein to your snacks and meals.

3. Stay well hydrated: Try to consume at least half your bodyweight (lbs) in ounces of water per day. Recently, a study done among overweight children found that consuming the recommended amount of water increased their metabolism by 25 percent (study). On the opposite side of the coin, poor hydration is linked to higher weight and obesity (study).

4. Stay rested: Clocking at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night keeps your metabolism running strong. When you’re chronically sleep deprived (consistently getting less than 7 hours of sleep per night), your body produces more of the stress hormone cortisol. This uptick in cortisol throws your hormonal balance out of whack, which can slow down your metabolism. Plus, sleep deprivation increases your appetite for carbohydrate-rich foods, like sweets and snacks, making sleep loss a double whammy for weight gain. (Study)

5. Build muscle: Thirty minutes of weight-bearing exercises 3 to 4 times a week can help you increase and maintain muscle mass, which keeps your metabolism running high. A pound of muscle burns about 6 calories a day whereas a pound of fat only burns 2 calories a day. So the more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism (study).

6. Drink green tea: Research suggests drinking 2-3 cups of green tea daily. It’s been shown to significantly increase metabolism for 24 hours after consumption (study). Also, green tea may boost fat oxidation, which means less storage of body fat.

7. Fill your plate with whole, plant-based foods: People following a plant-based diet usually have an easier time losing weight and keeping it off compared to their omnivorous pals. Why? Because plant-based foods are typically lower in calories than animal-based ones. Also, plant foods (and even more so whole plant foods) have a greater thermic effect than animal-based ones—meaning you burn more calories while digesting them (study). In fact, plant-based eaters burn about 300 more calories a day on average while at rest (study).

8. Reduce your stress level: Maintaining a healthy metabolism is also connected to our levels of stress and overwhelm. So if you want to lose the weight and keep it off, then stress reduction practices, like meditation, breath work, exercise, talk therapy and other self-care strategies, are important parts of your overall plan. In fact, recent research has shown a significant decrease in metabolism and an increase in insulin release (which triggers appetite) the day following a stressful event (study). Over the course of a year, this drop in metabolism could add up to 11 pounds.

– See more at: http://kriscarr.com/blog/boost-metabolism-weight-loss/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=metabolism-blog#sthash.Jqp3Fhu3.dpuf

 

The Lymph System and a Simple Lymphatic Cleanse

The Lymphatic (Lymph) System and a Simple Lymphatic Cleanse To Improve Health

The lymphatic system is a complex network of fluid-filled nodes, vessels, ducts and glands — including the spleen, thymus and tonsils — that bathe our cells and carry our body’s “sewage” away from the tissues and neutralize it. These elements of the lymph system work together to carry cellular waste to the bloodstream. The lymph system handles toxins that enter the body through external sources, such as foods or air pollution, but also handles internally produced toxins (endotoxins) that are the result of normal metabolic processes in the body.

The lymphatic system can be compared to the drains in your house and the blood to the faucets. If the drains are clogged in your sinks, you would clean the drains and not just the faucets. Without regular cleaning, the lymphatic system can stay clogged for many years thus forcing us to adapt to an environment of toxins that stresses and weakens immunity and other important pathways of detoxification.

The Lymph Stress Quiz

Take the following quiz to learn whether your lymphatic system could use cleansing.

1. Are you overweight or have belly fat?

2. Do you have cellulite or fatty deposits?

3. Do you suffer from various and sundry aches and pains?

4. Have you been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, lupus or another chronic immune system disorder?

5. Have you ever yo-yo dieted or are you always on some sort of diet?

6. Do you experience abdominal bloating?

7. Do you experience eye puffiness?

8. Do you have skin rashes or itchiness?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, your lymph system could use tuning up. For generally healthy people, cleansing once or twice yearly (for two to three weeks at a time) usually is adequate. If you’re overweight or have an immune disorder, you may wish to cleanse more frequently or for longer periods, under the supervision of your health-care provider. (modified quiz from http://www.herbcompanion.com/Health/Love-Your-Lymph.aspx)

Learn About Lymph

A study by Elisabeth Dancey, M.D., author of The Cellulite Solution (St. Martin’s Press, 1997), found that women with cellulite showed lymphatic system deficiencies. Another study found that 80 percent of overweight women have sluggish lymphatic systems and that getting this system flowing smoothly is the key to easy weight loss and improved feelings of well-being.

If the lymph system is inefficient, you may see fatty deposits or cellulite or experience aches and pains. Conversely, if you improve the cleansing ability of the lymph system, it will be able to “sweep” away the toxins that are linked to pain, cellulite, fatty deposits and some autoimmune disorders.

A healthy lymphatic system also helps purify the blood through the largest mass of lymph tissue in the body, the spleen. The spleen fights infection and destroys worn-out red blood cells in the body. By cleansing your lymphatic system, your spleen will be better able to handle the retired red blood cells.

MOVE YOUR BODY: EXERCISE IS VITAL

There is three times more lymph fluid in the body than blood, yet the body has no organ like the heart to pump lymph. That means lymph relies on deep breathing and exercise to move. While cleansing the lymphatic system, be sure to increase aerobic exercise — try brisk walking, rebounding on a mini trampoline or jogging. Also, it’s important to take time to practice deep-breathing exercises to help pump the lymph with fresh oxygen.

Thoroughly cleansing the lymphatic system is the key to long- term and efficient weight loss and great health. It is also the key to experiencing great health and living without pain.

3 Major Causes Of Lymphatic Congestion

1. Stress has been identified as the cause of about 80% of all disease. The chemistry of stress is degenerative and lymph congesting.
2. Chronic Digestive Imbalances like constipation and diarrhea due to irritated intestinal villi are classic causes of lymph congestion.  As the majority of the lymph in the body surrounds the gut (Gut Associated Lymphatic Tissues or GALT), the quality of the villi are critical for proper lymph flow, detoxification, assimilation and immunity.
3. Iodine Deficiency is also a common cause of lymphatic congestion. Iodine protects us from a toxic environment and supports the lymph at the cellular level. (link to nascent iodine)

Hydrate to De-congest and Cleanse Your Lymph

One of the most common causes of lymph congestion is dehydration. Water and only water can adequately re-hydrate the body. The best lymph moving re-hydration technique is to sip hot water every 10-15 minutes throughout the day. Do it religiously for one day. If by the end of that day you are experiencing a dry mouth and are now thirsty for this once tasteless sip of hot water, this is a good indication you are dehydrated and your lymph is congested. If this happens, try this re-hydration therapy: sip hot water every 10-15 minutes for 2 weeks straight. Keep a thermos of hot water nearby to make it easy to follow this protocol.

In addition to sipping hot water as part of the lymph moving re-hydration technique, try to drink 1/2 your ideal body weight in ounces per day for two to three weeks as well. For example, if you weigh 140 lbs, drink 70 ounces of water (almost 9 glasses) per day.

Red foods are excellent for the lymph system, with beets being at the top of the lymph-moving list. Even one a day, grated, raw or cooked, with a little lemon and Dijon mustard is a tasty lymph-moving treat. Beets also have one other very important property – they thin the bile. Bile is responsible for about 80% of the immune response in the gut, it regulates the stool, digests good fat and gets rid of bad fat.