Weird Ways You Might Be Messing With Your Metabolism
You know the most common ways a metabolism can be messed with, like not working out and eating tons of junk, but it doesn’t end there. Here are some weird ways you might be unknowingly slowing down your metabolism.
Now sleep is a crucial part of keeping a metabolism running smoothly, but sleeping in might not be. When you get up in the morning and have exposure to the sunlight it actually helps to regulate your?circadian rhythm which has purpose beyond your sleep schedule. Your?circadian rhythm also affects how much energy you burn and how hungry you are.
Your sleep schedule isn’t the only one it’s healthy to keep. Your body actually learns to anticipate when you’re going to eat and prepares by burning energy. If it can’t anticipate when you might eat however, it’s going to burn less calories to conserve all the energy it can just in case you don’t eat again for a while.
Not at fats are created anywhere near equally. Skip the processed snack foods which are full of bad fats and go with healthy fats from nuts and avocados. A small handful of walnuts for example has enough polyunsaturated fats to help stoke your furnace and increase fat burn.
Calcium plays an important role in keeping your metabolism regulated, since cells burn more fat when they have more calcium in them. If you get your calcium from dairy you will also get?conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and whey which can help your burn fat and build muscle.
Produce that isn’t organic?is covered in chemicals from pesticides that actually slow down your metabolism. Think twice when you’re shopping for foods like apples, produce where you leave the skin on to eat it transfer much more pesticides to your body than the kinds with removable peels like bananas.
A lot of people manage their weight loss by going light on carbohydrates, but cutting them out completely can backfire by shorting you on necessary energy. When you don’t eat carbs your body gets low on glycogen levels, and your muscles need some glycogen to work out. If you’re feeling to weak to get in a great workout you’ll be burning fewer calories and slowing down your metabolism, which is the opposite of what’s helpful for weight loss.
Something else important to think about when it comes to sleeping is the temperature of your bedroom. If you can keep it on the cool side (64-66 degrees fahrenheit) you can encourage your body to store more fat as the brown type of fat called?brown adipose tissue. Brown fat is the type that works to burn calories instead of storing them, so when you have more of that kind you’ll naturally be burning more burning more calories?throughout the day.
You might not realize that there is an important health difference between sea salt and iodized salt. Iodized salt plays a role in your thyroid function, since your thyroid needs iodine to stimulate your metabolism. Other sources of iodine include shrimp, eggs, and seaweed.
About Kate Ferguson Kate Fergus is a Los Angeles local and freelance writer for a variety of blogs and online magazines. When she's not writing, the UC Davis graduate is focused on pursuits of the entertainment industry, spin class, and hot sauce.