Metabolism is arguably one of the most misunderstood concepts amongst the general public. How often do you hear people saying things like 'she must have a high metabolism – that's why she can eat anything and still be so skinny.' Although this is not entirely wrong, it is important to understand what metabolism is and how it supports your body and how it works for you. Metabolism is nothing but the natural process through which your body transforms food into energy. Food needs to be broken down for your body to be able to use it as energy. Speeding up your metabolism will obviously speed up the process at which your body converts food and stored fat into energy and consequently you ‘loose weight’.
The common misconception that so many people hold is that they are 'born' with either a high or a low metabolism. Your genetic make up accounts for only 5% of your metabolic rate. The rest of your metabolism is determined by none other than you. There are only two factors that can account for your metabolism. Speeding up metabolism needs to focus only on these two areas. Although certain hereditary factors can play a role we will discard them for the sake of our discussion (it affects only a very small percentage of people anyway.)
1. What You Eat:
Loosing weight is not rocket science. We all to often blame things that are outside of us for our weight problems, but the fact remains that it is all just YOU. To loose weight there are only two things that can possibly play a role. What you eat and how you exercise your body. Speeding up metabolism starts with your eating patterns.
Many people deprive themselves of food in a vain attempt to loose weight. This actually slows down your metabolism and consequently it slows down the tempo at which your body burns calories. The key is to eat more, but less. Metabolism is a bit like getting a big heavy stream train to move – getting it moving is the hard part and once it's got momentum it is much easier to keep it moving. By having three to five smaller meals throughout the day you will keep your metabolism high.
Binge eating and depriving yourself of food are the two big no-no's if you are trying to speed up metabolism for weight loss. It is important then to eat high energy foods to keep up your metabolism. Fresh fruit and vegetables are packed with energy and will go a long way in speeding up your metabolism. Eating more does not mean eating and snacking on junk food. You need to eat more quality food.
2. Exercise
This is where most people 'bomb-out', but before you do, consider this. Your body was designed to move and to be active. Like anything in nature, if it's not used, it starts to deteriorate and being overweight is a nothing but a sign of deterioration. The reason why you always feel good after exercise is because the body releases hormones that only get released during exercise.
Your metabolism and the rate at which your body converts calories into energy is directly related to your body’s demand for energy. If your body does not require energy, the food will simply get stored as fat. When you increase the demand for energy you body will respond accordingly and increase your metabolism to meet this demand. Exercise is probably the easiest way to increase the demand and speed up your metabolism.
Speeding up metabolism by applying these two principles are often easier said than done. The cold hard truth however, is that this is all there is to it. To speed up your metabolism, either increase the demand through exercise or decrease the supply through what you eat.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Healthy And Energetic Raw Foods
Raw food detox diet involves eating food in its uncooked form, referring to anything that occurs naturally. There are immense benefits to be derived from a diet consisting primarily or sole of raw organic vegan food. Eating raw foods gives you 100 percent of the available nutrition. But you can lose up to 85 percent of the original nutritional value when you cook the same food.
Raw food detox diet also provides enzymes that help digest your food. Living foods not exposed to temperatures above 116 degrees Fahrenheit keep their enzymes intact; otherwise, the enzymes break up and your body has to work harder to digest your meals. Enzyme-rich foods give you a more realistic and efficient energy source. They rapidly break down in our stomach and immediately begin to provide energy and nutrition.
One of the most life enhancing benefits from eating a raw food detox diet is the abundant amount of energy that is available to you. Energy that is usually use to digest cooked food is freed up for you to spend for other things, when eating raw. You will find that when eating raw foods you will need to sleep less to feel rested.
Many athletes have found that light raw meals give a more sustainable form of energy and improve their performance. Students find that raw food detox diet gives them a more stable blood sugar level, helping them to think more clearly and stay more focused. Eating raw food is also known to enhance your beauty. Most of all, when you eat well you feel good - and feeling good is the essence of life.
To start your raw food detox diet, increase the amount of fresh foods in your cooked food diet. The cleansing process begins and helps flush out old toxins. Greens and fresh fruits are especially effective in pushing debris out of your cells and colon. These two primary raw food sources attune your body to eating more and more raw food.
As you feel fuller and more nourished from the increased quantities of raw food, you may consider trying to let go of cooked food. Cultured foods (like tofu) help initiate beneficial flora. Dried foods assist your transition by giving a raw food way to satisfy a cooked food craving for something heavy. The goal in a raw food detox diet is to achieve the ideal balanced diet of 60 per cent fresh foods, 20 per cent sprouted foods, 10 per cent dried foods, and 10 per cent cultured foods. Try to achieve that to make the most of healthy, energy and culinary enjoyment!
Raw food detox diet also provides enzymes that help digest your food. Living foods not exposed to temperatures above 116 degrees Fahrenheit keep their enzymes intact; otherwise, the enzymes break up and your body has to work harder to digest your meals. Enzyme-rich foods give you a more realistic and efficient energy source. They rapidly break down in our stomach and immediately begin to provide energy and nutrition.
One of the most life enhancing benefits from eating a raw food detox diet is the abundant amount of energy that is available to you. Energy that is usually use to digest cooked food is freed up for you to spend for other things, when eating raw. You will find that when eating raw foods you will need to sleep less to feel rested.
Many athletes have found that light raw meals give a more sustainable form of energy and improve their performance. Students find that raw food detox diet gives them a more stable blood sugar level, helping them to think more clearly and stay more focused. Eating raw food is also known to enhance your beauty. Most of all, when you eat well you feel good - and feeling good is the essence of life.
To start your raw food detox diet, increase the amount of fresh foods in your cooked food diet. The cleansing process begins and helps flush out old toxins. Greens and fresh fruits are especially effective in pushing debris out of your cells and colon. These two primary raw food sources attune your body to eating more and more raw food.
As you feel fuller and more nourished from the increased quantities of raw food, you may consider trying to let go of cooked food. Cultured foods (like tofu) help initiate beneficial flora. Dried foods assist your transition by giving a raw food way to satisfy a cooked food craving for something heavy. The goal in a raw food detox diet is to achieve the ideal balanced diet of 60 per cent fresh foods, 20 per cent sprouted foods, 10 per cent dried foods, and 10 per cent cultured foods. Try to achieve that to make the most of healthy, energy and culinary enjoyment!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)