People are always searching for the best fat burning foods that are available. There are two main ways that fat burning foods successfully work. One way is in their increasing the metabolism level. A faster metabolism means that more calories (and more fat!) will be burned even when you are resting. Fat burning foods can also be things that take more work for your body to digest. Foods that are difficult to digest mean that more calories are burned during digestion.

As mentioned, the very best natural fat burning foods work hard to increase your metabolism. An increased metabolism makes your body more efficient. Instead of it storing those excess calories, it will immediately burn them up. Green tea and cayenne pepper are two great examples of foods that speed metabolism. Cayenne pepper is proven to be a great fat burner. Tests have shown that some men doubled their metabolic rate by adding it to their meals. It then in turn increases heart rate as well as the temperature of the body. It is almost the same effect of one performing a light workout. If you don’t like the taste or heat of cayenne, there is a capsule form available for use.

Photo by Pink Sherbet Photography

Also falling into the best fat burning foods designation is green tea. Included in it is caffeine that will certainly increase ones heart rate. In addition, you will find it contains an antioxidant that is very strong and linked to weight loss known as EGCG. EGCG has been tested in a number of weight loss studies. However, there isn’t a lot of consensus on exactly how it works. This was one of the supplements that Tim Ferriss used in his infamous PAGG stack. Many people find a pull form easiest to take, but it you prefer to drink it be sure to avoid green tea that is loaded with sugar.

Here are some of the most common foods that can help you burn fats naturally.

• Fatty Fish: Fish like sardines, salmon, tuna and mackerel contain omega-3 fatty acids. This type of acid is essential when it comes to maintaining your body’s health, reducing the amount of triglycerides, and preventing the risk of various cardiovascular diseases.
• Beans: Cholecystokinin is a digestive hormone found in beans. This hormone serves as an appetite suppressant, which can help you prevent overeating. Aside from that, beans are a good source of fiber, iron, and protein as well.
• Asparagus: This is also considered as a fat burning food that contains a certain chemical known as asparagine. This is an alkaloid, which is helpful in stimulating the function of the kidneys and in improving the circulation of the blood. Alkaloids are helpful when it comes to dealing with fatty cells and breaking them down.
• Tomatoes: Tomatoes contain lots of vitamin C and oxalic acid that is helpful in oxidizing fats. They have a considerable amount of enzymes as well, that can help boost the body’s metabolism. Aside from that, the lycopene content of tomatoes is very helpful when it comes to preventing various cardiovascular diseases.

Photo by wormwould
• Hot Peppers: This fat burning food has a compound known as capsaicin. This compound can help you boost the rate of your metabolism and increase the amount of fat you burn. It is also very helpful in reducing the cholesterol levels in the body and aids in the breakdown of fat cells.
• Grapefruit: This is also a helpful fat burning food that contains pectin, which serves as an appetite suppressant aside from being able to regulate the insulin level of the body.
• Garlic: You may not be aware of it, but garlic is also a great fat burning food. Garlic contains a compound known as allicin, which has an antibacterial property. Aside from that, it also contains diuretics, which is helpful in the elimination of body toxins. This is one of the foods I recommend you eat during a 3 day detox.
• Cabbage: This should also be included in your menu as this is considered one of the best natural fat burning foods. Cabbage contains sulfur and iodine and aids in cleaning the stomach’s mucus membrane.

Fat burning foods can be very filling and can lower your hunger rate between meals. You can eat them as your main dish or as a side dish. Check out a post I did a while back for a wide range of  foods that can speed up your metabolism.

For more helpful, “need to know” information on this topic and many others, including how to lose belly fat, visit LeanBee.net.

6 Ways to Get Your Metabolism Revved Up

How do people have such high metabolisms, and how can I build my metabolism up?  To answer that question I did some research and came up with these 6 sure fire ways to speed up your metabolism.

1.  Workout in the Morning

Morning workouts give you a longer lasting After Burner effect (see #2) that helps you burn more calories during the day while on the other hand…

You do get some after burn with evening workouts but your after burn won’t last as long since you’ll probably end up going to bed in the evening and when you sleep – your metabolism slows back down.

2.  Interval Training That Is Intense.

Instead of just going for a brisk walk or a steady jog try adding alternating intensity levels.  For instance, when I ride my elliptical machine I warm up for about 3 minutes, and then I alternate between a steady pace and an up-tempo pace every minute after.  Intense interval training has been proven to increase fat burning after a workout, aka the “after burn”.

3.  Workout More Frequently

Doctors are now saying that a person can burn more fat throughout the day by doing 4 ten minute intense exercises instead of a longer 40+ minute exercise routine that is not as intense.  The idea of this is to sustain the after burn all day long instead of it dissipating later on the day.  It is just easier to workout at a high level for a shorter period of time than it is to hold that intensity for a 40+ minute workout.

4.  Drink 6 to 10 Glasses of Cold Water Each Day.

A research center in Berlin did a study showing that after drinking a 7oz glass of cold water that a person’s fat-burning metabolism increased an average of 30%.  JUST BY DRINKING WATER!  It would not take much for a person to increase their water intake to reap the benefits.  Plainly put, if you want your metabolism to work it needs water to do so.

5.  Making Fiber and Protein a Focal Point of Your Diet.

Fiber and protein take more calories to burn than other types of foods.  In fact, many fresh vegetables, like carrots, will burn more calories than what is taken in.  Just by replacing your normal snacks with some fresh veggies will help you lose weight!

6.  Eat More Smaller Meals During the Entire Day – 5 meals seems to be right.

Our stomach’s have a survival technique in that when you are hungry it will store more of the food we eat as fat instead of using it as energy.  If you eat a little something every few hours you will never be hunger, you won’t over eat, and the foods vitamins and nutrients will be used as they were intended.

Did I miss something or did those six natural ways to speed up your metabolism seem really easy to do?  There were no mentioning of crazy weight-loss pills, workouts, or diet plans.  Just basic common sense everyday things we can change.

Every wonder why that certain person always manages to stay so skinny no matter what they eat? Chances are their metabolism is on overdrive. Whatever they eat is burned up before their body stores it as fat. Jealous? You shouldn’t be.

Most people don’t realize that your metabolic rate is not fixed. Your activity levels and the foods you eat have a direct impact on the rate that your body uses the energy stored in the foods you consume. You can increase your metabolism. In fact one of the easiest ways to do this is by eating. There are actually foods that speed up your metabolism.

Foods That Speed Up Your Metabolism

Add a few of these to your list next time you run to the grocery store:

• Apples
• Celery
• Garlic
• Lemons
• Mango
• Onions
• Papaya
• Cabbage
• Lettuce
• Avocado
• Carrots
• Berries
• Oranges
• Spinach
• Turnips
• Broccoli
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini
• Nut milks
• Seed milks
• Asparagus
• Cucumbers
• Pineapple
• Grapefruit
• Cauliflower
• Raw Nuts & Seeds
• Green, Leafy Veggies
• Rolled Oats
• Whey Protein
• Almonds
• Natural Yogurt
• Green Tea
• Beans
• Spinach
• Eggs
• Turkey
• Chicken Breast
• Peanut Butter
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Canola Oil
• Whole grains
• Berries
• Cayenne Pepper
• Coffee
• Water
• Steak
• Salmon

How Do They Work?

Metabolism boosting foods work for 5 general reasons.

1. Foods containing fiber and complex carbs keep insulin levels low while you eat. Why is this good? Spike in insulin send a signal to your body that tells it to start storing fat. So your metabolic rate slows, fewer calories are burned and more fat is stored.
2. Foods that are spicy or contain caffeine increase your heart rate. This increased heart rate can have a significant effect on the number of calories your body burns in a day.
3. Foods containing a chemical called EGCG (usually found in tea) cause your brain and nervous system to operate more quickly. This equates to more calories burned in a day.
4. Foods high in protein take longer to digest. You body has to work harder to break down proteins that it does for fat or carbohydrates. Thus more calories are burned in the digestion process
5. Foods packed with Omega-3 fatty acids effect the levels of the hormone leptin. Current research shows that the levels of leptin in your body has a direct relation to your metabolic rate. More leptin means more calories burned.

A Few More Tips

Start early with a smart breakfast that includes some of the items above. Why? When you sleep at night your body goes into fasting mode and you burn fewer calories. Starting the day with a good breakfast kicks your body out of that mode and starts you burning more calories earlier in the day.

Eat smaller meals throughout the day. When eating more often, you tend to eat less at one time, which reduces the strain on your digestive system allowing it to work more efficiently.

When snacking, stick to foods high in lean protein – nuts and seeds are great. These foods also contain a high amount of amino acids which take more work to break down. This means more calories are burned to digest them.

Put these into practice with the list of foods above and you’ll be well on your way to a speedy metabolism.