Boost Your Metabolism This Summer

Get your body ready with these easy and effective nutrition tips!

If you’re reading this, you’re probably seeking the quickest, most efficient ways to boost your metabolism before the summer solstice creeps in. After all, sundress season is just mere weeks away and most of us could benefit from shedding a few pounds.

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That’s why we’ve compiled the best science-backed nutrition tips to help you hack your fat-burning furnace before the days grow longer. From easy food swaps to simple lifestyle habits, adopting the savvy tips below could be the key to keep you burning maximum calories and melting fat away—every day.

1 Pack Your Diet With Protein
The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn throughout your day—even while reading this! While hitting the weight rack is a sure-fire way to make those gains, incorporating enough protein in your diet will help you maintain muscle. New York-based dietician Leah Kaufman, MS, RD, CDN recommends eating 0.8 to one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight daily to fuel weight loss. So if you weigh 130 pounds, aim to get a range of 46 to 58 grams of protein each day.

2 Wake Up to Water
Start stoking your metabolism bright and early by reaching for two tall glasses of water upon waking up. A study in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism found that participants who drank about 17 ounces of water experienced a 30-percent increase in their metabolic. What’s more, the researchers extrapolate that drinking approximately six cups of H2O a day can help you expend an extra 17,400 calories over the course of the year. That’s the equivalent of a five-pound weight loss! Not too shabby.

3 Try Intermittent Fasting
You’ve heard all the buzz surrounding this popular diet trend, but are its claims credible enough for you to give it a shot? A Brazilian study found that intermittent fasting (IF) had a positive effect on the metabolism and heart—and resulted in weight loss as well as a reduction of fat tissue mass, blood pressure, and heart rate, and improvements in both HDL and LDL cholesterol levels. Researchers also found that IF helped increase the expression of a specific gene that’s responsible for the regulation of food intake and fat metabolism. In addition to saying sayonara to the spare tire and improving your ticker’s health, did you know this diet trick actually makes you live longer?

4 Eliminate Refined Carbs
We all know that when you’re looking to lose some weight, you should avoid bakery muffins and swap white bread for whole-grain in your sandwich. But why are these refined carbs—that we go out of our way to avoid—so detrimental to our diets? Sugar causes your blood glucose to spike and plummet, switching your hunger on. What’s more, if your body doesn’t burn off all the sugar you consume, it turns into fat, which doesn’t burn fat and boost your metabolism like lean muscle does.

5 Keep Healthy Snacks on Hand
“Always be prepared for a busy or unpredictable day by keeping healthy snacks on you, at your desk, in your car,”. Unsalted nuts, apples, bananas, chia bars, and protein bars are all great choices. “You’ll have no reason to run to the vending machine for chips or stick your hand in the candy bowl,”

6 Eat a Brazil Nut Daily
Seriously, you only need one. “I often recommend Brazil nuts because of their high selenium content,” Monica Auslander, MS, RD, LD/N, founder of Essence Nutrition tells us in 20 Ways to Reboot Your Thyroid. Just a single nut packs in your daily recommended amount of selenium. “Many folks with thyroid issues are deficient in this crucial antioxidant, and Brazil nuts are a potent source of selenium, not to mention extremely delicious and high in fiber, calcium, protein, and magnesium. Selenium helps convert thyroxine to its active hormone form, T3. Brazil nuts are rather large … they have a mild flavor and pair well with berries.”

7 Stick to Unsweetened Beverages
And we’re not talking about diet sodas! A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that frequently sipping on carb-sweetened beverages could increase postprandial (or post-meal) insulin response, leading to a reduction in lipolysis (or fat breakdown) and fat oxidation. If you’re craving a little fizz or flavor with your meal, opt for one of our 12 Sodas That are Actually Healthy.

8 Add Green Tea to Your Diet
Whether you’re sipping on it before breakfast or boiling rice in it (a must-try!), making green tea your everyday go-to will give your metabolism the jumpstart it needs. In fact, matcha powder has 3 to 137 times more EGCG—the fat-burning antioxidant found in the brew that’s associated with a speedier metabolism—than green tea. Add the Hulk-hued powder to shakes, oatmeal, and protein pancakes to boost your breakfast’s antioxidant powers.

9 Make Sure You’re Getting Enough Iron
An iron deficiency can cause unusual symptoms such as tiredness, brittle nails, and a slow metabolism. Keep your fat-burning furnace at full speed by adding more natural sources of the mineral into your diet. Dietary iron can be found in two forms: heme (which is found in animal sources such as red meats, fish, and chicken) and nonheme (which is derived from plants such as spinach and lentils). According to WebMD, meat, poultry, and seafood contain both heme and nonheme iron, while animal sources are more easily absorbed by the body.

10 Cut Down on Booze
Since the body recognizes alcohol as a toxin, the liver works to metabolize it first. What does that mean for your waistline? Your body will prioritize breaking down that frozen marg you gulped during happy hour before it does the avocado toast. Keep your metabolism humming by limiting yourself to two drinks and sipping a glass of water in between each drink.