Nope, this isn’t clickbait, just in case you were wondering. We know there are a lot of myths about boosting your metabolism: eating spicy foods and drinking water first thing in the morning are a few. It is possible to speed up your metabolism naturally, and it’s actually rather easy to do. According to experts, you can and should begin to eat more high-protein foods and healthy fats because your body has to expend more energy (which means a greater caloric burn) to process them.
Another easy way to boost your metabolism is to begin lifting weights. Strength training will allow you to burn more calories and build more muscle. If you’re wondering why you should do more strength training instead of Pilates (not that Pilates is bad), it’s because you build muscle when you lift weights, and muscle is metabolically active. The more muscle mass you have, the more energy your body produces, which will increase your metabolic rate — your body’s ability to burn calories.
Now that you’ve got the rundown on the importance of your metabolism, it’s time to get ready to work. Here is one of the best metabolic workouts for women. The goal of this workout is to help you build muscle. You don’t need to repeat it every day, but it’s a good starting point to help you increase your metabolism. If you’re looking for more workouts to follow, try this four-week beginner weightlifting plan.
The Metabolism-Boosting Workout
Equipment needed: You’ll need at least one set of dumbbells. Since everyone has different strength levels, select a weight that you can lift with proper form for all the reps (here is a guide on how to choose the right weight). If you don’t feel challenged after a couple of reps, increase the weight. I usually have a medium set of dumbbells for upper-body moves (10 to 20 pounds is a good starting point) and a heavier pair for lower-body exercises (15 to 30 pounds).
Directions: Complete this quick warmup. Then for each exercise, complete the listed sets and reps before moving on to the following exercise. Ideally, you should take no more than 30 seconds of rest in between each set and about 60 to 90 seconds of rest in between each exercise. If you need more rest, feel free to take it. Don’t forget to cool down and stretch after your workout.
- Dumbbell bench press: four sets of 12 reps
- Bent-over row: four sets of 12 reps
- Barbell squat: four sets of 12 reps
- Dumbbell walking lunge: two sets of 10 reps
- Dumbbell thruster: three sets of 12 reps
- Romanian deadlift: four sets of 12 reps