15 Best Foods to Boost Your Metabolism
Remember the days when your metabolism was like a caffeinated mouse in a wheel? Yeah, me neither. If you aren’t one of those lucky gals who can eat whatever she wants and burn it off thanks to an annoyingly fast metabolism, look to these helpful foods for a metabolic boost. (And check out this post on additional tips to speed up a sluggish metabolism.)
Grapefruit
This diet super fruit (above) lowers the insulin levels in your body that trigger your system to store fat. Plus, it is rich in fiber, and your body must burn extra calories in order to break it down.
Green Tea
Green tea is the main source of epigallocatechin gallate, known better as EGCG. This healthy catechin speeds up your brain and nervous system, causing your body to burn more calories.
Yogurt
The high levels of protein present in natural yogurt require a lot of energy to be processed. Plus, the pro-biotic cultures found in yogurt help regulate your digestive tract.
Almonds
Almonds’ essential fatty acids help raise your body’s metabolism. Just don’t overdo it because they’re also very high in calories.
Coffee
Coffee has caffeine, which does give you a boost. Just ensure that you don’t exceed 2 or 3 cups a day, or you risk a host of side effects, including irritability and jitters.
Turkey
This protein-rich meat builds lean muscle tissue, which causes your body to burn extra calories and raises your metabolism.
Apples
Like grapefruit, this low-calorie snack is high in fiber, which your body must burn calories to break down. Plus, since apples help you stay full for longer, you’ll eat less.
Spinach
Popeye was right about one thing: spinach can help make you strong and healthy. In addition to speeding up your metabolism, it’s a great source of antioxidants, magnesium, potassium, iron and vitamin C.
Beans
Low in fat and packed with protein, beans keep you full for long durations, and your body must burn extra calories in order to process this fiber-rich food.
Jalapenos
The capcaisin found in jalapenos causes your body to burn extra calories for hours after you ingest them, speeding up both your heart rate and metabolism.
Broccoli
Broccoli contains a highly effective metabolism-boosting team of nutrients: calcium and vitamin C. Calcium acts as a metabolic trigger, while vitamin C helps your body absorb more calcium.
Oatmeal
Because your body takes a long time to break down the fat-soluble fiber in oatmeal, this healthy food lowers your body’s insulin level and speeds up your metabolism as a result.
Soy Milk
Fortified soy milk is loaded with calcium, which helps boost your metabolism. Just stay away from the sweetened varieties.
Curry
Like jalapenos, curry increases the amount of calories your body burns and speeds up your metabolism.
Cinnamon
A little bit of cinnamon can go a long way. Add some zing to your daily cup of tea with this tasty spice to help your body metabolize sugars more effectively and maintain steadier blood sugar levels. Cinnamon can also help lower your cholesterol.
For more information, check out these articles at My Fit and Fitness Tips for Life.
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14 Comments
May 12th, 2009 at 10:38 am
At last – an explanation for why a bowl of chopped fruit smothered in yoghurt for breakfast perks me up more than anything. It’s not the fruit – it’s the yoghurt.
Oatmeal, however, slows me down all day (or seems to – maybe it’s the milk or something else).
Is it a rule then that the more complex a foodstuff is (in the raw, unprocessed sense, I mean), the more your body has to work on digesting it and the more your metabolism gets boosted?
May 13th, 2009 at 6:55 am
Why is it I eat all of that good stuff and still have a sluggish metabolism unless I work out pretty hard? I guess it’s all moderation. When I’m working out and eating a lot less, my furnace is cranking! I would like to eat more grapefruit.
May 15th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Nice article! I reprinted it on my blog. I hope that’s ok!
May 17th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
Fantastic Article! I was surprised to discover that Jalapeños were on the list as well as curry. That might be why I put them on everything. :p
Luanne: Have you had your thyroid checked out. I had the same symptoms you are exhibiting years ago. I discovered my thyroid wasn’t quite working after visiting an endocrinologist. It’s a common problem. If it is your thyroid, your metabolism might never be the way it once was I’m afraid. I still struggle with my metabolism even with thyroid medication.
July 13th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
I loved this article because of all the excellent food suggestions. I just read another similar article that explained that peppers are metabolism boosting foods because they contain a natural compound called capsaicin, which increases fat oxidation (fat burning) for energy.
July 22nd, 2009 at 8:55 pm
thank you for this great suggestions. My metabolism is not great and I have been told by my doctor that I need to lose about 25 pounds and it’s been hard to lose the weight. I this great food suggestions would go a long way to help me increase my metabolism and in turn start to lose some weight. thanks again for your tips.
July 23rd, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I love yogurt smothered fruit. I keep reading that the grapefruit thing is a myth, though.
July 23rd, 2009 at 8:23 pm
Great info. Thanks for sharing it with us.
August 1st, 2009 at 12:36 pm
One thing to keep in mind is giving our digestive tract a break. Many sources say eat less, but more often. Your digestive is working all day and even into the night. We Americans need to remember two meals a day can sustain us. Especially if we don’t burn that midnight oil and let our bodies get some rest as well.
August 31st, 2009 at 8:07 pm
I was expecting to see a list of unappetizing foods like grapefruit and straw here, but I am pleasantly surprised to learn that it actually includes some of my favorite staples! Now I can eat more curry without so much guilt–yeah!! Thank you!!
September 1st, 2009 at 10:15 pm
Interesting….I just read another article about increasing metabolism and it said to stay away from caffeine, which I’m more inclined to believe. Caffeine dependency can contribute to sluggish adrenal glands..and that’s bad in the long run in terms of metabolism, and every other bodily function pretty much.
Soy milk is not good for you either. It is chemically processed and your body can’t properly digest soy unless it is a fermented, not to mention current studies that are showing the negative affects soy can have on estrogen levels. There are plenty of other sources of vitamin C available in vegetables and fruits…like broccoli which is already listed on here. I wouldn’t depend on soy milk for vitamin C to boost your metabolism, I think it will do more harm than good in the long run.
dark green fiberous veggies, lean proteins, lots of water, exercise, and less sugar and refined foods. That will certainly help your metabolism.
September 2nd, 2009 at 8:38 am
Hi Melissa, thanks for your comment! I think you make a good point about coffee. I’d love to see any research you’ve found on caffeine’s impact on hormone production. With soy, some people eat whole, fresh soy beans and are quite fine with it, so I’m not sure that the body can’t digest unfermented soy; also, while soy does have some minimal levels of phytoestrogens, these hormones are in smaller doses and are much more gentle than the hormones found in regular dairy milk. Though I agree, the best source for nutrition is fresh produce.
September 5th, 2009 at 10:55 am
I workout with a Personal Trainer (Terry Frare) at Fitness in Motion (St. Louis, MO). I received some great suggestions about boosting ones metabolism and your site was their source. Reading your suggestions was extremely informative; I do try to live-up to eating all the foods you mention. Love your web-site and will look in to joining. Thanks to
Fitness in Motion.
Charlotte Mussman
St. Louis, MO
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