Your metabolism is crucial for helping your body convert food to energy. A healthy metabolism makes it easier to lose weight and keep it off.
If your metabolism seems to be slowing down, age or genetics may be to blame. But what about everyday habits that could be sabotaging your metabolic rate? Here are 10 things you could be doing to slow down your metabolism and what you can do about them.
It’s always a good idea to keep your caffeine consumption in moderation. However, going without that dose of energy in the morning means a missed opportunity to boost your metabolism. If your body can’t handle caffeine or if it adversely affects your blood sugar, keep reading for more tips!
You may know that calcium is essential for bone strength. But you may not realize that your body also needs it to maintain your metabolism. Unfortunately, many people are calcium-deficient. If that’s the case with you, make sure you’re consuming enough milk and dairy. You can also replenish your calcium with kale, tofu, canned salmon, and fortified foods like some cereals, orange juice, and almond or soy milk.
When you’re trying to lose weight, it’s easy to avoid carbs. However, your body needs carbohydrates to produce insulin, which increases metabolism and helps you burn calories more effectively. The key is to limit or avoid simple carbs, such as sodas and processed sweets like cookies. Get your healthy carbs from vegetables, whole grains, and fruits.
Greasy meats and excessive butter can hinder your weight loss goals. These high-fat foods influence how your body manages insulin, often causing insulin resistance, which can lead to obesity and diabetes. Fatty foods also impair your body’s ability to digest food properly. Besides watching your fat intake, ensure you’re eating plenty of fruits and vegetables.
Metabolism can stall when your body doesn’t have enough water. Drinking a tall, cool glass of water can kick-start your body’s energy-burning capacity. Whether ice-cold or room temperature, drinking water at meals and throughout the day can support your weight loss. Also, eat plenty of watery foods like cucumbers and watermelon.
When you’re stressed, your body produces cortisol, a hormone that floods your body with quick energy. Unfortunately, if you don’t burn that energy or continue to be stressed out, your body keeps making cortisol, which makes it harder to use insulin. This chain reaction will stall your metabolism and contribute to weight gain.
Learn to identify your stress triggers and how stress shows up in your body, like tense shoulders or quick breathing. Keep some coping strategies ready, such as deep breathing, visualization, or anything that works for you.
Restful, plentiful sleep helps keep your metabolism stable. In contrast, not getting enough shut-eye or having sleep disturbances lowers leptin, a hormone that enables you to feel full after eating. Poor sleep also raises your blood sugar and increases your appetite.
The recommended amount of sleep for most adults is 7-9 hours each night. If you typically fall short of this amount, do what you can to work toward this goal. Ask your doctor for assistance if you can’t improve your sleep on your own.
To boost your weight loss efforts, you may be tempted to starve yourself or be strict with your eating. However, if you don’t eat enough, especially when you regularly exercise, your body will think it’s starving and respond by slowing down its metabolic rate. When your body attempts to survive on fewer calories, it works harder to hang on to the pounds you’re trying to lose.
To achieve consistent weight loss, the last thing you want to do is starve yourself. Eating smarter, not just less, will more effectively help you drop those pounds.
Your metabolism thrives on consistency. Your body’s 24-hour circadian rhythm affects the timing of your metabolic rate and other physiological functions. Grabbing a snack at random times of the day or skipping meals can disrupt your metabolism and make it more difficult to curb your appetite. An inconsistent meal schedule also increases your risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Some prescription drugs, like antidepressants and antipsychotics, may slow your metabolism. Other drugs can reduce your heart rate, which can inhibit your body’s ability to burn energy. If you’re worried about a medication’s effect on your metabolism, ask your doctor if this will be an issue or if they can recommend an alternative drug.
If losing weight has become more challenging, it may be because of your metabolism. Making a few changes to your daily activities or self-care routine may help. If these adjustments don’t give you the metabolic boost you need, Happy Hormone Cottage can help. Our comprehensive weight loss program can provide the help you need with increasing your metabolism, controlling your appetite, and managing your insulin. Contact us today to learn how you may benefit from medically supervised weight loss close to home.
