The faster your metabolism, the more calories your body needs, which helps you to achieve healthy weight loss. However, our metabolism tends to slow down with age, which makes you gain weight easier than losing, in which your body has more leftover calories, which tends to be stored as fat. Fat, essentially stored at the abdominal area, organs and liver can increase the risk of getting chronic diseases such as heart diseases, hypertension and diabetes. The rate of metabolism varies from person to person, the most common factors of a reduced metabolism include the reduction of muscle mass, lack of physical activity and natural aging processes as a result of age.

5 Ways to Boost Your Metabolism

1. Eat adequately

Starving yourself or have a heavily restricted diet can make you lose weight fast, but in the long-term, your metabolism tends to slow down due to calorie deficiency, which can cause you to regain the weight easily. To achieve a healthy and sustainable weight loss, eating enough is the key to boost your metabolism.

2. Eat enough protein

Protein is one of the most essential macronutrients for the build, repair and maintenance of muscle tissue, which is crucial for you to maintain a high metabolism. Besides, eating enough protein also helps to temporarily increase your metabolic rate, known as thermic effect of food (TEF), in which the amount of calories burned for digesting and absorbing protein is higher compared to carbs and fat. Hence, consume enough high-quality protein such as dairy, eggs, chicken and fish to give your metabolism a boost.

3. Stay active

All body movements, from standing, walking to doing chores requires energy or calories. The more active you are, the higher your metabolism. Hence, increase your physical activity and exercise regularly to help boost your metabolism for weight loss.

4. Resistance Training

One study conducted among 50-60 years old men showed that, having resistance training or lifting weights at least 3 times per week helps to boost resting metabolic rate by 7.7% in 16 weeks. As muscle is more metabolically active than fat, having a higher lean body mass helps to increase metabolism.

5. Get enough sleep

Not getting enough sleep affects your energy, concentration and health in general, including reducing your metabolic rate, which makes you gain weight more easily. One study has shown that healthy adults who slept for 4 hours for five consecutive days had average reduction of metabolic rate by 2.6%. Hence, ensure getting at least 8 hours of sleep per day is essential to maintain a high metabolism.

Reference：

Healthline