Overall, there is not much we can do to significantly increase the body’s metabolism. However, we will introduce 4 strategies that can help you shift the conditions in your favor.
First, we need to understand the concept of metabolism. Simply put, metabolism is the set of processes involved in the intake and expenditure of energy in your body, and your metabolic rate is the speed of these processes or the number of calories you burn over a specific period of time.
4 Ways to Increase Metabolism
Method 1: Strength Training
While HIIT provides you with the benefits of the EPOC effect, strength training itself can also burn a significant number of calories and gradually improve body composition. Regular strength training means that your muscles burn more calories even at rest, and this number increases the more you train. If your goal is fat loss and muscle gain, strength training should be part of your workout program.
Method 2: HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training)
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) triggers the EPOC effect. EPOC stands for “Excess Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption” and describes the increased oxygen consumption after a HIIT workout. This means the intense nature of HIIT forces your body to use a wide range of metabolic and energy systems. So even while resting, your body continues working to restore balance and burn calories.
Method 3: Increasing Certain Food Intakes
Some drinks such as green tea and coffee may help increase metabolism. However, you should avoid consuming them too late in the day, as they can interfere with sleep—while proper sleep is also essential for a healthy metabolism.
Spicy foods like chili peppers may also help boost metabolism. If you don’t enjoy eating spicy foods directly, you can simply make your meals spicier.
Another important factor is protein. The body requires energy to break down and process the amino acids found in protein. This is known as the “Thermic Effect of Food” (TEF), which makes protein more metabolically demanding compared to other macronutrients like carbohydrates.
At the same time, higher protein intake also helps with muscle building.
Method 4: NEAT
NEAT stands for “Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis” and refers to calories burned outside of formal exercise. A simple everyday example is walking part of your commute instead of using a car. NEAT can play a major role in increasing metabolism because, unlike structured workouts, it can be done continuously throughout the day.
Let’s summarize!
Changing your metabolism is very difficult and limited, but the methods above can help you slightly increase it and achieve better results.