Raising the Metabolism

There exists a daily dietary struggle and internal turmoil that rests like a crude rock of insecurity in the pit of every woman's stomach - no one is safe, no one is exemplary. Blame it on the media; blame it on the Middletons; or blame it on your mothers..."she always made me feel fat. Yes, that was almost certainly her intention." It matters not, it is what it is. Now, one can scribble furiously in the back pages of a Hello Kitty diary, fuming that Jenny has an over-active thyroid and you don't, or one can start putting a little consideration into what one eats and how one lives. Today, we shall look at the metabolism and how you can give yours a secular kick. Heed the advice below, and you too will have the resting metabolic rate of an eight year old boy on amphetamines.

Thyroid attention - zinc, copper, selenium and iodine (especially if you are pregnant - congratulations, by the way) are all integral to the prosperity of your thyroid. The thyroid controls how quickly the body uses energy, makes proteins and manages how sensitive the body is to other hormones. Neglect your thyroid and in time you'll soon be fighting your weight, whilst losing your muscle and feeling like you have the hormones of an aspiring runway model. Yes, I watch Britain's & Ireland's Next Top Model (BINTM)...Naomi to win, she's just - like - soooo gorgeous and - like - totally owns the camera/a camera. Don't be a chubby BINTM contestant, they don't exist; eat more seafood and/or more nuts and look after that thyroid of yours.

Join the resistance - if you have more muscle on your frame, your resting metabolic rate will increase. You needn't be a bodybuilder to partake in resistance training. "No ladies, you will not look bulky and over muscled, for the hundredth time...have a look on-line at female bodybuilders - that is the body you will build if you train for two hours every day, eat chicken every two and a half hours, ingest enough pills to make Conrad Murray frown and top things up with enough human growth hormone to bring a badger back to life. Stop fretting and start lifting.

Water - drink plenty of it. The metabolic process needs water to fuel it. Add ice and your body has to work harder to warm it up, which means a temporary increase in your metabolic rate. Happy days.

Spice up your life - chillies, black pepper, cumin and even cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg and ginger all play their part. Cayenne and black pepper works best, I find, as they contain capsaicin and piperine, respectively. Thermogenesis is what it's all about. 

Exercise early - do as as Rocky does and try and get in a bit of exercise first thing. Short and intense works best *dramatic pause followed by muffled laughter*. Warm up for five minutes, go hell-for-leather for ten minutes and warm down and stretch for another five minutes. Make that ten minutes HIIT filled and say bonjour to a soupçon du oxygen debt; your metabolism is now akin to a race horse's. Ney, indeed....ney, indeed. Now go down those eggs. Adrian!

This is enough to get you started with, for now. Bonne chance mes petites fleurs. Mange tout, mange tout.