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What Foods Help Boost Metabolism?

Metabolism provides the energy you need to get through your day, powering you through everything from the most mundane activities to intense workouts. This bodily engine determines the calories you burn and how many you need to stay energized. Though exercise is one important way to speed your metabolism and stay in shape, the foods you eat also play a major role. Make sure to consume no less than 1,000 calories per day, and fill meals and snacks with metabolism-boosting foods.

  1. Protein

    • Foods that are high in protein act as top metabolism boosters, burning twice as many calories during digestion as fat or carbs do. Eating protein regularly also helps you build muscle mass, another important way to rev your metabolism. Some of the healthiest metabolism-boosting protein sources include egg whites, nuts, beans, low-fat dairy products, fish, poultry and lean cuts of beef. Turbo-charge your metabolism by including protein in every meal, such as yogurt for breakfast, turkey in a sandwich or salad at lunch and grilled fish or chicken at dinner.

    Essential Fatty Acids

    • Essential fatty acids, or EFAs, are another power food that can help boost metabolism. Eating two servings of essential fatty acids daily can help your body burn extra calories. When you consume EFAs, your body's insulin response improves, helping you build muscle and shed fat more easily. Some good picks containing essential fatty acids are wild salmon and almonds (both are also high in protein), avocado and organic olive oil.

    Green Tea

    • A cup of green tea can help speed your metabolism, allowing your body to burn more fat than you normally would. A study conducted at the University of Geneva, Switzerland found that green tea consumption appeared to boost metabolic rates and speed up the body's ability to break down fats. Green tea's metabolism-boosting properties include caffeine and catechins, substances that have been proven to help burn extra calories in the short term.

    Coffee

    • Similarly to green tea, coffee contains caffeine, which helps increase your metabolism considerably (if only for a few hours). Drink black coffee for the best metabolism-speeding results, since loading your mug with cream and sugar can add on more calories than you need. According to Web MD, a 145-pound woman who drank two cups of coffee was able to burn 50 extra calories over the next few hours. For an added metabolism boost, drink an iced coffee, since research indicates that ice-cold drinks may use up extra calories.

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