5 Easy Ways to Up Your Metabolism

Your metabolism - you hate it or you love it. For those who hate it, try these 5 ideas to increase your metabolism and help you burn more calories.

1. Eat fish
Go for the gold, the omega-3s, in fish like sardines, herring, tuna, mackerel, trout, and salmon. Studies have showed that if you consume fish you can boost your calorie burn by as much as 400 calories a day.

2. Eat dark green leafy vegetables
Arugula, collard greens, dandelion greens, kale, chard, and spinach are classified as dark leafy greens. They're full of vitamin C, vitamin A, calcium, and lots of fiber. They're also packed with loads of antioxidants, but what really helps you increase your metabolism is the fiber content in these vegetables. Your body is going to burn a lot more calories because of the work it takes to digest the fiber in these foods.

3. Eat more tomatoes
Tomatoes have lycopene, which is the antioxidant that has been found to have natural cancer fighting qualities. Tomatoes are also a good source of fiber. The key ingredient for eliminating fat, however, are the acids in tomatoes that help your body get rid of fat from your system.

4. Eat more fruit
Whole fresh fruits are thought to have "negative calories", meaning your body will burn more calories digesting the food than it stores from eating the food. Try adding fresh fruits like blueberries, strawberries, or bananas to boost your metabolism.

5. Eat spicy foods, chiles, and curry
The capsaicin in many hot peppers increases your metabolism due to the "fire" it creates inside your body. It is even believed that there is a 50% increase in metabolism after eating a spicy meal that contains capsaicin. So keep that bottle of hot sauce handy and use it liberally!

Try these five ways to boost your metabolism and burn more calories. Here's a perfect menu for dinner tonite: Cajun blackened salmon, a salad made with spinach and tomatoes, and a fresh fruit salad for dessert.

Should I Try a Fad Diet?

Lots of people look at fad diets as a quick answer for weight loss. You've seen the many ads on the internet and in magazines that say that you can lose lots of weight in only a few days time. These ads are very enticing!

Is this type of weight loss really possible? Yes, but... in many instances the weight loss from a fad diet is temporary and usually due to loss of water weight. The body is made up of a large percentage of water so as soon as the body rehydrates itself, the weight that was lost so quickly will go back on just as quickly.

There are also reasons why a fad diet is not good for you.

1. Many times a fad diet will tell you to focus on a single food type and avoid all others. This means you miss out on all the nutritients your body needs. For good health you need a more balanced diet approach.

Quite often these fad diets will even tell you to take vitamins and supplements to make up for all the nutritional deficiencies you experience while on the fad diet. However, your body may not be able to absorb all the nutrients from the recommended supplements. Plus, many of the foods that help you absorb nutrients are banned on fad diets.

2. Fad diets are usually so restrictive or unappetizing that after a short time you begin having overwhelming cravings for other foods. This leads to binging on the wrong foods and stopping the diet. This quitting can also wreak havoc on your self esteem as you beat yourself up for not having enough willpower to stick to the diet.

3. Fad diets are temporary solutions to weight issues. Even if you do follow through to the end with a fad diet you have not made permanent healthy changes in the way you handle food. Fad dieters tend to be yo-yo dieters who gain and lose the same pounds (and maybe some extra) again and again.

No matter what you see in the media about quick weight loss diets, realize that these diets will never work as a long term solution. Weight loss done correctly will be a lifestyle change; one that you can live with. Combine eating a sensible amount of a variety of healthy foods with regular exercise and you're going to be the winner at losing!

Chicken and Chicken

Chicken Patties
1 lb. ground chicken breast
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup chopped green onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried sage
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. olive oil
2 cups non-fat chicken broth

1. Mix together the chicken, bread crumbs, garlic, green
onions, thyme, sage, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Form
into 8 patties and place them, covered, in the fridge for
about 1/2 hour.

2. Spray a large fry pan with cooking spray and half the oil.
Cook 4 of the patties for 6 minutes on each side, or until
brown and no longer pink inside. Move these to a plate.
Cook the other 4 patties in the remainder of the oil and
move these to the plate.

3. Pour the chicken broth into the fry pan and bring to a
boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the broth is reduced to
half the amount you started with. Spoon this broth over
the patties when serving.

1 patty is 79 calories, 2 gm. total fat, 32 mg. cholesterol,
111 mg. sodium, 0.4 gm. fiber.


Chicken Salsa
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thawed
1/2 cup non-fat chicken broth
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup salsa

1. Spray a fry pan with cooking spray and cook the chicken
for about 2 minutes on each side.

2. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

3. Add everything else. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes or
until chicken is cooked through.

Makes 4 servings.
1 serving is 199 calories, 4 gm. total fat, 73 mg. cholesterol,
192 mg. sodium, and 1.6 gm. fiber.