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There are a lot of people who would pay a fortune to increase their metabolic rate. Having a high metabolic rate enables one to maintain the rapid burning of fat and lose weight fast with the minimum amount of effort. Metabolism is the process by which the body produces and consumes energy and calories to support life.

There are many factors that affect the metabolism of a person, such as the percentage of muscle tissue, the frequency of the meals one consumes, hereditary factors, levels of stress, personal diet and activity levels. Metabolic rate is slowed down by the following: loss of muscle tissue because not enough physical activity is being done, the tendency of the body to recycle its own tissue because there is not enough food energy to sustain it, and the decrease of exercise that comes naturally with old age.

There are several ways to raise the body's metabolic rate such as:

1. Develop a lean, mean body mass. It is inevitable that metabolism decreases along with age, but it is possible to minimise the effects. The level of muscle that a person has is a very strong determinant in their ability to burn calories and lose weight. So it goes without saying that exercise is a major factor. Muscle Tissue should be enhanced by working out at least twice a week, preferably with weights. Do easy exercises in between the full workouts. Light exercise such as walking the dog and using the stairs in place of the elevator can burn off calories. The secret is to match the input of calories to the amount of exercise that you do.

Here are some guidelines in getting the right exercise:

For strength training -Gradually increase the amount of repetitions of a particular exercise. -Raise the level of resistance -Develop advance exercise techniques if this is possible. You may need to consult a professional trainer

For cardiovascular training -Add rest periods between exercises -Perform cross-training and combine the exercises - Increase resistance and speed

2. Don't go hungry in the morning. Many people are going without breakfast even though it is the most important meal of the day. Surprisingly, it has been found that those people who eat a meal at the start of the day are thinner than the ones who do not. The bodies metabolic rate can slow down considerably if breakfast is taken during mid-morning or if one waits until the afternoon to eat.

3. Avoid sugar. Sugar is used by the body to store fat. It is recommended that a person consumes food that helps sustain an even level of blood-sugar. Additionally, regular exercising 2-3 times a week should be able to stabilize the body's level of blood sugar.

4. Never skip meals. Although it would appear to be an obvious fact that cutting out a meal will help you lose weight, but this is not true. The problem with skipping a meal is that it slows down your metabolism. A side-effect of missing out on a meal is that, missing a meal will make you more likely to snack between meals.

5. Change your diet. Eating curries can be good for you and help lower your weight! Any hot cuisine with peppers can increase metabolism. Higher metabolism means that the body can burn fat faster.

6. Stay in bed. Researchers have found that people who miss out on their sleep are at the greatest risk of putting on weight. Also, muscles are regenerated during the last couple of hours of sleep.

7. Drink more. Toxic by-products are produced whenever the body converts fat. Water flushes out these toxins that are produced. is a fact that, most of the bodily functions involves water, and lack of water results in an imbalance of the body's functions, and produces unneeded stress as a result.

8. Reduce the size of meals. The ideal diet is to consume 4 to 6 small meals intervals of every 2 or 3 hours. Eating less food is a major factor in reducing your calorie intake.

9. Eat Energy Foods. Include more high energy foods in your daily diet. These energy foods include such items as whole grains, beans, fruits and vegetables.

10. Make a detailed plan of your meals. Make sure in advance that you prepare the right amount of food that you have planned for each of your meals. Do not commit the mistake of eating meals in sporadic patterns.

11. Ditch the stress! Stress, whether it is physical or emotional stress, triggers the release of a steroid called cortisol, which decreases body's metabolic rate. Chilling out will reduce the amount of cortisol in your body and so keep up your metabolic rate. Another problem with stress is that people tend to eat more of the wrong foods when stressed.

12. Drink green tea. Green tea can be drunk instead of coffee. Green tea has the ability to stimulate your metabolism, and unlike coffee, it has no undesirable side effects when too much is consumed.

All that you need to achieve your desired weight loss is the determination and patience required to stabilize your metabolic level, which is so important in weight loss. If you can stabalise your metabolism then you can lose weight. The real trick is realising that eating correctly and working out is not just a passing fancy, but a way of life.