The BMR (basal metabolic rate) measures how many calories you burn at rest. It's a measure of how many calories you can lose doing nothing. Small changes towards improving your BMR will bring about great health benefits, including burning fat and warding off weight gain! Here are some pointers to improve your BMR as well as metabolism.

• Get enough sleep. It’s essential to get 7 hours of consecutive sleep for proper rest which is needed by the body. Lack of sleep can really slow down the rate of metabolism. And we know what that means – an overweight lethargic tired person (joking, joking, I’m just being dramatic).
• Drink green tea. It’s one of the easiest and fastest ways to rev up your metabolism. 3-5 cups a day can help you burn 70 calories! So it's basically a calorie-free way to really increase your metabolism. Now isn’t that a win-win situation?
• High-intensity workouts. Regular cardio raises your metabolism while you’re doing it but once you’re down, it drops back down to normal. A high-intensity workout jumpstarts the metabolism and keeps it going even after you’re done working out. This way, you burn fat and calories during as well as after your workout.
• Eat breakfast. Actually, scratch that. Make sure you have 4-5 small meals a day including breakfast! Digesting food takes energy which is basically your metabolism. So instead of your metabolism rising just thrice a day, it rises 4-5 times a day thus increasing your BMR.
• Drink lots of H2O. Drinking water speeds up digestion and burns calories. Being dehydrated causes cravings which makes the body think you're hungry. By drinking water regularly you keep your bodily fluids balanced and also prevent any wrong messages being sent by your body.
• Lift weights. Experts say that after you lift weights, your metabolic rate stays raised for up to 39 hours after your workout! Also, that means all your fat is getting converted into muscle and muscle is way more metabolically active than fat!
• Drink coffee. Caffeine alters our fuel usage so we use fat for energy rather than glucose. Also, caffeine can increase your basal metabolic rate by around 5% to 10% for 2 hours. It also helps break down fat. But be careful not to go overboard because too much can cause nervousness or insomnia.

So even though our BMR depends on genetics, gender, size, sex, weight and many more factors, there are some ways to keep it in control! It's always beneficial to have a well-balanced metabolic rate, especially for its health benefits. But remember, just like metabolism is more than energy burning, there’s more to our nutritional needs than just calorie counting!   Download the Grow Fit app on Google Play or App Store today for a free consultation with diet specialists.

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