Boost metabolism

Drink Green Tea or Oolong Tea

Green tea and oolong tea have been shown to increase metabolism by 4–5% (53, 54, 55).

These teas help convert some of the fat stored in your body into free fatty acids, which may increase fat burning by 10–17% (56).

As they are low in calories, drinking these teas may be good for both weight loss and weight maintenance (57, 58, 59).

It's thought their metabolism-boosting properties may help prevent the dreaded weight loss plateau that occurs due to a decrease in metabolism.

However, some studies find that these teas do not affect metabolism. Therefore, their effect may be small or only apply to some people (60, 61).

BOTTOM LINE:Drinking green tea or oolong tea can increase your metabolism. These teas may also help you lose weight and keep it off.

 Eat Spicy Foods

Peppers contain capsaicin, a substance that can boost your metabolism (62, 63, 64).

However, many people can't tolerate these spices at the doses required to have a significant effect (65).

One study of capsaicin, at acceptable doses, predicted that eating peppers would burn around 10 additional calories per meal. Over 6.5 years, this could account for 1 lb (0.5 kg) of weight loss for an average-weight male (66).

Alone, the effects of adding spices to your food may be quite small. However, it may be slightly useful when combined with other metabolism-boosting strategies (67).

BOTTOM LINE:Eating spicy food could be beneficial for boosting your metabolism and help you maintain a healthy weight.

 Get a Good Night's Sleep

Lack of sleep is linked to a major increase in the risk of obesity (68, 69).

This may partly be caused by the negative effects of sleep deprivation on metabolism (70).

Lack of sleep has also been linked with increased blood sugar levels and insulin resistance, which are both linked to a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes (70, 71, 72, 73).

It's also been shown to boost the hunger hormone ghrelin, and decrease the fullness hormone leptin (74, 75, 76).

This could explain why many people who are sleep deprived feel hungry and struggle to lose weight.

BOTTOM LINE:Lack of sleep can decrease the amount of calories you burn, change the way you process sugar and disrupt your appetite-regulating hormones.