There was a study published in the journal Obesity which reported that slowly eating and chewing food can help increase one’s postprandial or after –meal energy usage, metabolism and oxidation of fat. Another study also specified that chewing gums after eating a meal can lead to the increase of what is referred to as “dietary-induced thermogenesis” which is the number of calories you burn while your body metabolizes the food you’ve just consumed.
This is probably why a lot of health practitioners tell their clients to make sure that they chew their food properly and make use of gums after each meal in order to maximize the number of calories they burn per meal session.
In addition to these, below are some more ways to boost your metabolism without putting up much of an effort.
- Take in a lot of minerals.
Most bodily functions such as digestion, enzyme activity, electrical impulses within cells, and metabolism are controlled by minerals. Take copper for instance; its presence in the body lowers the amount of damage from free radicals and also speeds up the body’s recovery from exercise and other strenuous activities. Copper can also help in maintaining the health of connective tissues, promotes bone health and facilitates the normal functions of the thyroid gland. So for rich sources of copper minerals, try turnip greens, crimini mushrooms or blackstrap molasses.
- Do the twitch.
It’s a fact that the more you move, the more calories you’ll end up burning. It’s a bit of an obvious thing that not a lot of people can seem to comprehend. So to simplify things, “constant moving” actually includes minor activities like feet-tapping, standing-up, standing down, drumming your fingers, moving your neck from left to right, or your head in circles, rolling your eyes, or even clenching your butt! These seemingly little things may only incorporate a few muscles, but remember that every time that a fiber of your muscle moves, it spends energy which then ups your metabolism and overall body temperature.
While it’s true that movement from larger groups of muscles may burn more calories, those tiny movements that you can do with very little effort should not at all be discounted. So if you’re trying to lose or at least maintain your weight, then make sure that keep on fidgeting or twitching as often as possible. It seems funny right? But this totally helps.
- Don’t park nearby.
A lot of people dressed up in nice and fancy suits or dresses end up wasting a lot time cruising around the parking area in the hopes of landing a prime parking spot. But really, walking a few blocks from the parking lot to the restaurants of your choice, even when wearing a nice suit is not that bad. In fact, doing so can earn you a bit of an exercise which can help improve your metabolism levels.
- Use mint.
Hooray for peppermint gum! Aside from being a well known tummy-soothing agent, peppermint can also be a rich source of nutrients that are essential for healthier metabolism.
- Get a healthy dose of sleep.
Some people may not know it, but sleep can actually help heaps in maintaining good metabolic rates. Probably also lost in translation is the fact the any form of sleep deprivation can tilt your body towards eating more and actually storing more fats which can lead to obesity, diabetes, heart diseases and a whole lot of health problems.
So again, improving your metabolism need not be ultra hard for you. Just make sure to chew your food well, chomp on some gum, consume minerals, keep moving and sleep nicely, so you can help your body burn those excess calories away.