Speed Up Your Metabolism

How our metabolism functions depends on genetics, but it is possible to speed it up by eating certain foods. That said, how much we each also makes a difference, so take that into consideration before stocking up on these foods.

The following is from Everyday Health. See if you can incorporate these foods into your diet!

Four of the Best Foods to Help Boost Your Metabolism

Avocado

Avocado is high in healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, which promote satiety. A study published in November 2013 in Nutrition Journal found that adding half an avocado at lunch may help overweight people feel more satisfied and reduce their desire to eat in the hours following a meal.

Since avocado is an anti-inflammatory food, it may have a secondary effect. “Inflammation can definitely interfere with a lot of different things in your body, one of which might be metabolism,” says Lisa Moskovitz, RDN, the CEO of the New York Nutrition Group in New York City.

If you’re trying to lose weight, be mindful of portion sizes. One quarter of an avocado has 80 calories and 8 grams of fat.

Beans

Beans are an excellent source of protein to keep you feeling satiated — and amino acids, the building blocks of protein, can help preserve muscle mass and thus burn more calories while your body is at rest. “Foods that promote or preserve lean muscle mass are always good for metabolism,” Moskovitz says.

Additionally, the fiber in beans helps to fill you up with fewer calories so you can go for a longer time between meals or eat less overall.

Eating ¾ of a cup each day of beans or legumes was found to contribute to just over half a pound of weight loss over about six weeks, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis published in September 2016 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Although half a pound itself isn’t a huge amount, adding beans and legumes to your diet may help you lose weight and prevent you from gaining it back, the authors noted.

Whole Grains

Unlike refined grains, whole grains contain fill-you-up fiber, are anti-inflammatory, and may be beneficial for weight management. A study published in March 2017 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that swapping whole grains for refined grains may result in a “modest increase” in resting metabolic rate. Study participants who substituted whole grains for refined also had increased calorie loss during digestion.

Eggs

Eggs are not only low in calories, but because they’re an excellent source of protein and some healthy fat, they stave off hunger. They’re also a good source of B vitamins, which have been shown to boost metabolism. “B vitamins help convert the foods you eat into energy, so they help with processing those calories better and using them for energy,” Moskovitz says.

Research published in the International Journal of Obesity looked at overweight and obese adults over an eight-week period. Two sets of participants went on a diet that reduced their energy intake by 1,000 calories a day. One of these groups ate two eggs for at least five days a week for breakfast and the other group consumed the same amount of calories but ate bagels. The egg eaters lost 65 percent more body weight, 16 percent more body fat, had a 61 percent greater reduction in body mass index (BMI) and a 34 percent greater reduction in waist circumference. (The study also looked at two other groups of participants, who did not go on a reduced-calorie diet but followed the same egg or bagel plan. No statistical differences in weight or fat loss were shown between these sets.)

See the list for some foods that could slow down your metabolism.

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