If you haven’t tried some of these, your waistline really wants you to.
If you haven’t tried some of these, your waistline really wants you to.
HOT PEPPERS
There’s a good reason that some like it hot. Capsaicin — the compound that gives peppers their fiery kick — helps boost metabolism by raising your body temperature.
BELL PEPPERS
Surprise! Contrary to popular belief, hot red peppers aren’t the only veggies that contain metabolism-boosting capsaicin. Though bell peppers have smaller amounts, they still allow you to get your fix.
CELERY
Celery might not seem like it has any superpowers, but it’s blandness can be beneficial. It doesn’t have much taste on its own, but chomping on the super low-calorie food stimulates digestion, keeps your body hydrated, and has plenty of fat-burning fiber, all of which amp up your metabolism.
TUNA
Nothing to be sorry for, Charlie. Tuna — along with salmon, mackerel, herring, and sardines — contains omega-3 fatty acids, which stimulate the production of hormones that regulate metabolism and appetite.
WATER
You need water to survive — and drinking eight glasses a day is also great for your metabolism. A small study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that consuming 500 ml of water caused metabolic rate to spike 30 percent within 10 minutes, an effect that lasted for around a half hour.
SUNFLOWER SEEDS
These nuts are rich in polyunsaturated fats, which studies show could help melt belly fat. The how isn’t totally clear, but it could be because mitochondria, the energy factories of cells, need polyunsaturated fats to help burn flab.
MATCHA
Yup, that’s just a fancy word for green tea. It not only packs a bit of caffeine, which speeds up your heart rate and thus your metabolism, but it also has norepinephrine-stimulating EGCG, a nutrient that helps boost your metabolic rate.
PAPAYA
Keep the taste of the Caribbean alive in your kitchen. This tropical fruit contains papain, an enzyme thought to improve digestion — a key to boosting metabolism and torching fat.
ALMOND BUTTER
This nutty spread is a low-glycemic food, meaning it helps keep your blood sugar levels stable. That’s crucial when your blood sugar spikes and crashes on the regular, it slows down your metabolism.
Don’t vote all carbs off the island. Oats are loaded with beta-glucan, a special type of fiber that helps slow the digestion of carbohydrates, which releases sugars at a slower rate. This triggers certain metabolic responses that decrease appetite.
GRAPEFRUIT
Move over apples and oranges! This tart citrus fruit contains naringenin, an antioxidant that helps keep your blood sugar consistent and helps improve calorie burn.
YOGURT
People who upped their yogurt intake — eating at least one serving a day — dropped almost a pound every four years, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that followed nearly 120,000 adults for two decades. Those who skipped a serving a day gained weight.
RED WINE
If you’re going to cut back on an Italian dinner, it’s better to ditch the pane than the vino. Refined carbs found in white bread and pasta trigger a release of insulin, which can then store as extra fat. Red wine, on the other hand, contains resveratrol, which may help you better metabolize the sugar you do eat.