If you’re trying to boost your metabolism to burn more calories and lose weight quicker, you’ve probably heard that you should drink water first thing in the morning. Curious as to whether or not drinking water upon waking up could drastically impact our metabolism, POPSUGAR spoke with Sarah Greenfield, RD, CSSD, the director of nutrition at Hum, and Alex Caspero, MA, RD, CLT, RYT, a Hum nutritionist. “A quicker metabolism means your body is able to process energy or calories more efficiently. When you can process energy efficiently, less is stored in your body and more is used to fuel the body,” Sarah told POPSUGAR.
When it comes to drinking water for that added boost, Sarah said, “It may help you cut out some additional calories throughout your day, but it will not help you burn more calories.” According to Alex, water doesn’t provide any energy and therefore will not affect your metabolism. Sarah said that drinking water in the morning can help you stay more hydrated and be in touch with both your hunger and satiety cues, but that’s about it.
Consuming foods like hot peppers and drinking green tea and caffeine can help boost thermogenesis, but the best way to boost your metabolism is to increase your muscle mass, said Sarah. Alex echoed this sentiment and told us that consuming metabolism-boosting foods and drinks doesn’t do enough to make a lasting difference.
According to Alex, the best thing you can do to boost your metabolism is to exercise. “Muscle cells are more metabolically active than fat. What that means is your body will be burning more calories at rest the more muscle mass it has,” Sarah explained. The leaner body tissue (muscle mass) you have in your body, the more you’re able to burn calories without having to do anything, Alex said. “That means that adding more muscle can increase your resting metabolic rate — how many calories you burn each day outside of activity.”
So there you have it. If you’re looking to really alter your metabolism, it’s time to start picking up the weights. Here’s a four-week beginner weightlifting plan to get you started.
