Tip of the Week

5 ways to boost your metabolism

1. Train yourself to eat 5 or 6 small meals each day. This will keep your metabolism primed so that you're burning fat at optimal capacity. When you go too long between meals, your body senses starvation and slows down in order to conserve it's fuel supplies. This is one of the very best ways to boost metabolism and achieve maximum weight loss.

2. Never skip breakfast! If you've just slept for eight hours, your body has been deprived of food for a long period of time. Your body will respond by going into "starvation" mode unless given proper fuel. Just be sure to choose your breakfast foods wisely! A doughnut and coffee is not the best choice.

3. Eat a small amount of protein (3-4 ounces) with every meal that you eat throughout the day. Choose lean protein sources such as lean turkey, egg whites, or white fish.

4. Drink at least 6 eight ounce glasses of water everyday to boost your metabolism. Can't bring yourself to drink that much water? Try substituting unsweetened green tea for some of your water servings. Green tea has been shown to have an independent metabolism raising effect.

5. Hit the gym to do some resistance training. While aerobic exercise may burn calories, resistance exercise or weight training builds muscle. The higher your muscle composition, the faster your metabolism will be. As if that isn't enough, if you lift weights for as little as 20 minutes, your metabolism will be boosted for up to 2 hours after completing your workout. Toned muscles will also look better making this one of the best ways to boost metabolism and reshape your body.

View more - from the article "8 Sneaky Ways to Boost Your Metabolism" by Kristie Leong, M.D.