First, some good news: it’s entirely possible to trigger your body to break down food and transform it into energy more efficiently. Of course, like anything worth doing, it just takes a little effort. But before we get to what you should do, a little refresher on what we’re talking about. Simply put, metabolism refers to the chemical processes by which your cells produce the substances and energy needed to sustain life—and the higher it revs, the more energy (and thus fat and calories) your body burns.
Your metabolism is responsible for the total number of calories your body burns each day. Sixty-five percent of those calories are used up for involuntary functions like breathing and circulation, with another 10 percent devoted to the process of digesting the very foods that may have resulted in those damned love handles in the first place. The remaining 25 percent of the calories you burn can be chalked up to your daily physical activity—everything from that morning workout, standing in line for coffee and washing the dishes at the end of a day.
You’ve likely heard it before: the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn, even when you’re not being active. And sure, it’s true that some of us have a slight genetic edge in the amount of muscle fibers we’re born with. But don’t blame your parents for your flab. “It’s your environment, that is, food and activity, that is extremely important in ultimately determining your weight,” says Andrew G. Swick, PhD, who oversaw obesity research at the University of North Carolina’s Nutrition Research Institute. So, what can you do to not only add muscle but also maximize your metabolism? Follow these guidelines.