4. Eat More Often.
We know you’re super busy, but make sure you grab lunch. “Simply chewing, digesting and absorbing food kicks your metabolism into gear,” says Jim White, RD, a national spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association.
“The more frequently you eat, the more often it revs up while skipping meals slows down your metabolism, says White. “Your body switches into starvation mode and your system slows down to conserve energy, so have three healthy meals of 300 to 400 calories and two snacks of 200 to 300 calories every day.”
5. Just Double Your Exercises.
Working out is the number-one way to keep your furnace cranking.
The more lean muscle you have, the more calories you burn all day. That’s because muscle uses energy – even when you’re resting.
“Do three days of aerobic activity and two days of weight lifting,” advises Shawn Talbott, PhD, an exercise physiologist, nutritional biochemist, and the executive producer of Killer at Large, a documentary about the U.S. obesity epidemic.
6. Be More Active.
Sitting too much (at your computer or in front of the TV), slows your metabolism, even if you’re exercising regularly. An easy fix is to stretch, stand at your desk for a few minutes, stroll, and even fidget throughout the day.
That’s what scientists call NEAT, or nonexercise activity thermogenesis, and it can boost your burn and help you drop weight, says James Levine, MD, Ph.D., professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and author of Move a Little, Lose a Lot.