Foods that affect your metabolism

Metabolism establishes the rate at which we burn calories.  Some foods stoke the metabolic furnace and some douse the flame.  You should always aim to do the former so that you become more metabolically efficient:)

Top Foods that will Increase Metabolism

Green Tea 

Often ranks at the top of the list for its ability to increase your metabolism.  Aim for 2 – 3 cups a day.

Cinnamon 

Supports healthy food sugar levels by allowing sugar to get into cells to be used for energy, so less is stored as fat.

Almonds

Contain heart-healthy fats and fiber.  Supports healthy metabolism, as well as, healthy blood pressure.

Berries 

Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries and cherries all support healthy metabolism and fat burning.

Turkey and lean protein 

Lean protein helps the body build lean muscle tissue, which in turn helps burn more fat.

Whey protein 

Similar to turkey and lean protein, helps the body burn sugar more efficiently. 

Jalapeño (and Cayenne) peppers 

A little goes a long way here.  One of the powerful chemicals in these spicy peppers, capsaicin, can speed up your metabolism.

Worst Foods for Metabolism

Potato Chips 

These along with French fries have a disproportionately large effect on how much weight we gain over time. 

Donuts 

Donuts are full of trans fats, sugar and white flour – all of which increase inflammation in the body and slow down metabolism.

Cereal 

When cereal becomes our go-to breakfast, we subject ourselves to an overabundance of carbohydrate making us even more hungry than we were before.  Eating cereal at night as dessert just puts us in sort of a carbohydrate induced coma, slowing everything down, including metabolism.

Corn Chips 

Most tortilla chips are fried and salted and should never be a part of the day-to-day regimen.

Ice Cream 

Sugar plus dairy equals snooze fest:(

Sugar 

Real or fake it does not do a body good and never satisfies.   It keeps the body begging for more and eventually leads to metabolic syndrome where the body  just gives up and stores fat.

Fried foods 

High fat foods, especially the trans fats and saturated fats, are not as easily digested.  In fact, much of the time the body will not recognize it as food and it will simply store it in the form of toxins in your own body fat.  This ultimately slows down metabolism and fat burning.