5 Tips to Boost Metabolism

Are you someone who struggles with keeping the weight off even when you are religiously following a low carb diet and excising like a crazy person?! You know who you are - those of you who get up at all hours of the morning to get your long, calorie burning runs and workouts in, count each and every calorie that hits your mouth, and work your butt off only to see the scale move only one pound a month?! That used to be me too!

If your scale is stuck and you are feeling frustrated and confused, you are not alone and this week's What's That?! Wednesday post is a must read for you. We find that weight loss resistance is very common with women especially since our hormonal systems are so much more complicated than men's. So what is weight loss resistance?

Weight loss resistance is essentially the inability to lose weight even when your "caloric output" is higher than your "caloric input" or you are burning more calories than you are taking in but still not losing weight. This is when the more traditional dietary rule of "calories in vs. calories out" fails and a more functional medicine approach comes into play. This approach focuses on hormones and the metabolic imbalances that occur when one or more hormones is out of balance. It's actually your hormones that govern nearly all aspects of fat loss, from where you store it to how much you store, to your cravings and even your addictive patterns with food.

These five tips will help you begin to turn on your "fat burning hormones" and turn off your "fat storage hormones"
and may help you begin to lose weight again. 

5 Tips to Boost Metabolism:

1. Rethink your breakfast. - Choose protein, fiber, and healthy fats for breakfast! Choosing carbs for breakfast (like cereal, wheat toast, bagels, doughnuts, pastries, pancakes, waffles, etc) will spike your blood sugar, which will cause your body to release insulin, a "fat storage hormone," and it causes cortisol to plummet. Cortisol is supposed to be naturally higher in the morning to help you stay mentally sharp and give you more energy to get through your day. When it plummets from a high carb breakfast, it sets you up to feel tired, sluggish, and unable to focus - not cool!  It also sets you up for increased sugar and carb cravings the rest of the day which can lead to overeating - no thank you! 
   
   We suggest a green smoothie with plenty of clean vegetable protein, organic greens, and a small portion of fiber based carbs like 1/4 of a greenish banana, 1/4 cup of organic berries, or 1-2 tablespoons ground flax seeds or chia seeds. Check out our blog 5 Steps to Make the Perfect Green Smoothie to get some great recipes with the right combinations of nutrients to boost metabolism, not squash it. Another great breakfast choice is fresh, organic eggs from pasture raisedd chickens with clean proteins, green leafy vegetables, and fiber based carbs. Try our Seasonal Vegetable & Quinoa Frittatas for a breakfast that will power you through your day and keep those fat storage hormones turned off. 
   
   
2. Focus on "good carbs" and not as much on "low carb or no carb."  - We suggest choosing good carbs that are fiber based. Include a small portion of fiber based carbs at each meal (1/4 cup to 3/4 cups) to help keep your blood sugar stable and insulin turned off. Eating a no or low carb diet and/or relying on "diet foods" can lead to metabolic imbalances that will actually prevent weight loss and tell your body to store fat instead of burn it. Check out our post Good Carbohydrates vs. Bad Carbohydrates to learn more about "good - fiber based carbs" and to get a list of the best choices in this category as well as the types of carbs to avoid and how many cabs to have at each meal. 
   
   
3. Choose organic, grass-fed, pasture-raised, and wild caught proteins. - Not only does conventionally raised meat promote inflammation - which slows your metabolism and makes you hold on to fat, conventionally raised animals are overloaded with estrogen, growth factor, and several other hormones in order to "fatten them up". The problem is that these hormones get stored in the tissues of these animals because it is too much for the animals body to properly process and use up. That means, that when you eat non-organic, grain-fed meats, you consume all those excess hormones and your body "gets fattened up" too because of an overload of hormones  - excess estrogen being one of the worst.  This often causes estrogen dominance - or more estrogen in relation to progesterone - especially in aging women whose progesterone levels naturally start to drop after the age of 35. Estrogen is what gives women our curves - our hips, booty, and breasts -but when there is too much estrogen and not enough progesterone to balance it out, it can lead to fat storage and weight loss resistance. You can read more about choosing organic proteins on our blog, Why is Eating Organic Important? 
   
   
4. Boost your intake of organic, green, leafy vegetables.  - Not only do green leafy vegetables have tons of fiber, they also contain powerful anti-oxidant benefits that fight inflammation, regulate digestion and support your immune system - all of which you need in order to balance hormones and lose weight. Plus, greens help escort excess hormones, especially estrogen, out of your body through your waste along with other toxins that may be disrupting or slowing down your metabolism. 
   
   
5. Think "good fats" instead of "non-fat" - For the last few decades fats have been demonized by most doctors, nutritionists, and even our own government.  We were all told that fat makes you fat, so that was the most important thing to be taken out of your diet if you wanted to lose weight. The non-fat and fat-free trend skyrocketed and we had every food manufacturer stocking the shelves with plenty of non-fat treats for us all to enjoy on our "diets". What happened? Since these recommendations came out in the 1970's our obesity and disease rates have skyrocketed and it is now projected that one in every two Americans will be obese by the year 2050. Heart disease and diabetes are at all time highs and the number of those being diagnosed with autoimmune conditions continues to rise. 
   
   Now experts are trending more toward a healthy fat diet and the science behind these recommendations is overwhelming. In fact, numerous studies show that eating less fat actually makes it more difficult to lose weight and increases our risk of inflammatory diseases significantly.  Fats are essential to many of your body's functions including your metabolism! In fact fats are used to make your hormones, so when your diet is void of healthy fats, your metabolism really struggles and slows down - not cool!  So which fats are the healthy ones?
   
   We recommend a diet of around 30% healthy fats including a variety of monosaturated fats, saturated fats, and Omega fats.  There are healthy and not healthy choices in each category, so to help you choose the right foods, check out our blogs: 4 Sources of Healthy Saturated Fats, Health Benefits of Monosaturated Fats, Omega Fats for a Healthy Anti-Inflammatory Diet.
   

​BONUS TIP:  Make some time for personal care and relaxation.   - Stress can be a huge contributor to metabolic and hormonal imbalances - it can increase your cortisol levels significantly and signal your body to store fat instead of burn it. Schedule at least 3 rest and relaxation activities each week for yourself and guard that time with your life! Rest and relaxation activities include daily mediation, yoga, pilates, a leisurely nature walk or dog walk, a relaxing detox bath (click here for detox bath recipes), a movie night at home curled up on the couch, getting a massage or spa treatment, or anything that makes you feel calm, happy and relaxed. 

If you want to learn more about how to shift your metabolism back into balance and get that scale moving in the right direction for good, take a peek at our Metabolic Recovery Program. Perfect for women over the age of 35 who are struggling with maintaining a healthy weight and energy level or have hormonal dysfunction.  

We also offer a FREE 15 minute phone consultation, just contact us here to set one up and get started on your health goals today. We look forward to helping you master your metabolism and your scale and meet your wellness goals!

~Billie & Jen