How do I increase my metabolism?

A person's total daily energy expenditure (the total # of calories you burn in a day) consists of 3 factors:

1) Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). These are the calories your body burns for normal cellular function at rest. This accounts for roughly 60-75% of your total daily calorie expenditure.

2) The thermic effect of food. These are the calories your body burns in order to digest and assimilate nutrients from the food you consume. This accounts for roughly 10% of your total daily expenditure, so for those of you who don't eat regularly, you're doing yourself a disservice!

3) Calorie expenditure from physical activity and exercise. This is the easiest way to increase your total daily expenditure. Increasing your physical activity throughout the day can drastically increase calorie burn. This accounts for 15-30% of your total calorie expenditure.

Increasing your metabolism basically means increasing your RMR, your ability to burn calories at rest, but that doesn't mean that you can't also increase your total daily expenditure by increasing your calorie burn from the thermic affect of food and physical activity.

Here are some tips for increasing your total daily expenditure, as well as your metabolism:

1) Eat regularly. Make it a point to eat SOMETHING every 3-4 hours. It can be a piece of fruit, string cheese, yogurt, etc., but you need to maximize the calorie burn from consuming food.

2) Consume proteins. Every time you consume protein, you will burn about 25% of the calories in the food to break down the proteins in the food (i.e. if you eat an egg that has 100 calories, your body will burn 25 of those calories to break the proteins in the egg down). You're basically getting a better return on your dietary investment. Now, please don't misunderstand, I'm not suggesting you start eating sausage, bacon, and steak with every meal. I'm just suggesting that you consume protein-rich, healthy foods on a regular basis. This can be milk, eggs, turkey, chicken, soy products, etc.

3) Eat spicy foods/foods with caffeine. By eating spicy foods or caffeine, you will temporarily increase calorie burn in your body. This will NOT have a drastic affect on your total daily expenditure, but it can help a little here and there. If you don't like spicy foods, or you can't consume caffeine due to pregnancy or high blood pressure, please don't start doing so to burn a couple more calories!

4) Increase daily activity. I know this seems like a no-brainer. There are tips everywhere on how to do this: walk up the stairs instead of taking the elevator, park far away from the entrance to a store, etc. These are great tips because every little bit helps. We are so attached to our computers and TVs these days that the amount we move becomes more limited with every new technology. I mean, we don't even have to walk to the copy machine because we can send the print job from our computer. The point is, fit in extra movement where you can. Do you have kids involved in sports or music lessons? Instead of watching their practices, use that time to walk laps around the field or around the block. Do you love to cook? Turn on music and dance while you cook. Spend some time gardening every week. Again, every little bit helps.

5) Schedule regular exercise. Wait, didn't I just say to increase daily activity? So, what's the difference? Activity is just your basic movement throughout the day. It's not planned exercise. Scheduled exercise is a conscious decision to physically exert yourself at an intensity level that ranges from light to heavy for an extended period of time (anywhere from 5 min. on). This is in addition to the extra activity you try to squeeze in throughout the day. In a perfect world, you would be able to fit in roughly 4-6 1-hour increments dedicated to exercise each week. I know for many of you this seems impossible. Do what you can, but make it a priority, work at a level that pushes your body, and stick with it! Remember F.I.T: Frequency, Intensity & Time, the 3 keys to improving fitness level. By scheduling in regular exercise, you will increase your daily calorie expenditure.

6) Lift Weights as part of your Exercise regimen. Do some sort of weight-bearing activity: squats, lunges, stair-stepping, push-ups, dips, dumbbell exercises. Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so by building muscle mass you will increase your RMR, and in turn, your total daily calorie expenditure. This is probably one of the most important, and one of the most over-looked suggestions.

Here's the thing, if you want to change your body, you need to start with a realistic program for you. Make small changes and add to them as you realize success. If you can't stick to one program, don't give up, just make an adjustment and try again with something else.

Good luck!