Page Love consults about nutrition, wellness and fitness issues with women, men, and children of all ages. Over the years, she has come up with some great Top Ten lists that help to answer recurring questions about many topics. Here are some of the most popular ones, aimed at providing some concise advice!

Looking to Shed Some Holiday Weight?
Raise Your Metabolism!
By Page Love, MS, RD, LD

Unless you had more than your share of self-control this holiday season, you’re probably in the same boat as most people – looking to lose some post-holiday pounds. So, it’s back on the diet and back to the gym, right?

Wait! If you are watching your diet or working out strenuously, you may actually be telling your body to conserve its energy!  Contrary to what many people think (that you have to severely cut portions or exercise until you drop to lose any weight), you can get your body running like a machine by giving it the proper fuels and keeping it well-oiled.

Carbs are a body’s best friend

That’s probably not something you’ve heard lately, with today’s low-carb craze.
Take it from an expert: The ultimate diet mistake is to cut out carbohydrates. This results in decreased metabolism and lower energy level. Fat is only burned in the flame of adequate carbohydrates. Low-carb diets cause quick water loss, not fat loss. And, because no one can sustain such restrictive eating for very long, you eventually crave carbs so severely that you may actually binge on high-calorie, high-fat foods to satisfy the hunger.

When you consume enough “healthy” carbohydrates – grains, vegetables and fruits – throughout the day, your body’s cravings for both energy and sweets will be satisfied. Carbs at each meal can raise metabolism, increasing your fat-burning capacity.  Ideally, we should get at least 50 percent of our daily calories from these foods, but the average American gets only 45 percent of calories from carbohydrates.

How do you know what to eat? 

Step one:  Plan menus around the new food pyramid (www.mypyramid.gov), starting with healthy “high fiber” carbohydrates like whole grains, cereals, rice, pasta, and starchy vegetables. At a minimum, allow for two servings (or one cup) from this group at each meal. If you are very active or trying to maintain weight, consider eating more portions. Some athletes need up to twice the serving indicated by pyramid guidelines.

Step two:  Add in the second level of healthy carbohydrates – fresh fruits (two to four servings per day) and vegetables (five to eight servings per day).  These two groups contribute metabolism-raising high-fiber choices to the diet.  And fruit, a natural sugar source, is an excellent dessert or snack option to help satisfy sugar cravings.

Step three:  Allow a minimum of two servings each from the meat and dairy categories. Whenever possible, choose the lowest-fat selections to limit the amount of saturated fat in the diet. Don’t kid yourself into eating too much – portions are two to three servings, 3-4 ounce each, in the meat group, and two to three 8-ounce portions of milk or yogurt in the dairy group.  Eat them at meal time (e.g., milk with cereal in the morning, or yogurt as a dessert option at lunch or dinner) to ensure meeting your calcium needs.

If you are want to lose weight, reduce your meat-protein intake to the lower end of the range (two servings, 2-3 ounces/day), and eat a larger proportion of your protein earlier in the day. For example, eat 3-4 ounces of protein at lunch and save 1-2 ounces for dinner. By eating a lighter dinner, you store fewer extra calories eaten in the evening.

Last step:  Provide your body with small amounts of fats and oils daily. You need half your body weight in grams of essential fatty acids per day found in vegetable fats: grain, seed and nut oils like those in salad dressing; oils; mayonnaise, and margarine. We get some hidden fat just from eating baked bread made with vegetable fats. So, “use sparingly” means just that – use small amounts of condiments or oils.

If trying to lower fat intake, you can count fat grams. Just keep in mind the balance with the other food groups and maintain your total fat sources at no less than 15 grams per day. A simple suggestion is to allow one teaspoon of margarine, mayonnaise, or oil per meal. This provides a calorie-satisfying energy source and helps satisfy your appetite. Most adults maintain weight on 60–80 grams/day. When trying to lose weight, the total fat gram count should be 30–50 grams per day. The menu below keeps fat below 30 percent of the total calories.

Don’t forget snacks.

Grazing can help you to maintain higher overall energy plus give you more energy to be able to exercise later in the day. Starving your muscles by not fueling them when you are truly hungry lowers your metabolism. Choosing snacks from both the fruit and bread group can energize you and raise your metabolism throughout the day.

What about exercise?

We have heard for years that exercising, especially aerobically, raises the metabolism. Activities like aerobic dance, bench stepping, jogging, treadmill, walking, racewalking, hiking, stairstepping, cycling or swimming done on a regular basis are calorie-burning activities that will definitely contribute to healthy weight management.

When planning any exercise regimen, consider three primary factors: intensity, duration, and frequency.  Intensity refers to the heart rate you achieve during the exercise session, duration means the length of time you exercise per session, and frequency means how often you exercise during the week.  While there is no best formula, experts generally agree that one’s heart rate should be in the target zone of 50 to 80 percent of the maximum heart rate (220 minus your age equals maximum heart rate), the duration should be a minimum of 30 minutes up to 60 minutes, and the frequency should be 3–5 times per week.

Don’t forget about anaerobic exercise. This type of higher intensity activity – calisthenics, stretching, yoga, Pilates, and strength training – can increase your metabolism by helping maintain lean tissue. It not only increases your fat-burning capacity, but it helps tone and shape your body. New muscle tissue gives your motor more power to burn the fuel!

When is the best time to exercise? Pick the time of day that’s best for your routine. While there is no concrete evidence supporting that exercising at a specific time of the day will raise your metabolism more, exercising at the end of the day can create a calorie burn that helps suppress appetite and prevent nighttime overeating. So, if your schedule allows, try to fit your activity in before or after dinner. One idea is to do your strength training first thing in the morning, as an energizing start to the day, and your aerobic exercise in the evening.

Don’t forget adequate rest.  Your body needs not just sleep but rest from physical activity to allow tissues to regenerate. Make sure that you take a day off from exercise two times per week. On a day you do exercise, if you feel fatigued or sore, your body is telling you to lay off. During exercise, if you feel a pain or twinge, stop immediately and relax. The injury you avoid now will allow you to continue exercising regularly in the future.

A sample menu.  The menu example below gives you an idea of how to use basic food groups as a tool.  A suggested schedule is described for programming your exercise routine along with your food intake.  Remember, you cannot do one without the other.  Nutrition fuels fitness!

Creating the Ideal Day for Raising Your Metabolism

(based on minimum nutrition needs)

6:15-6:45 a.m.
Activity Session:  Stretching or yoga

7:30-8 a.m.
Breakfast: 1 bagel or 1 slice toast and ¾ cup dry cereal
½ cup orange juice or ½ banana
8 ounces 1% skim milk or 8 ounces of nonfat or low-fat fruit-flavored dairy yogurt
1 teaspoon of regular margarine or 1 tablespoon of diet margarine on toast or bagel

10 a.m.
Snack:  1 orange or apple, with half a bagel or 1 oz pretzels

12-12:45 p.m.
Lunch:  2 slices of sandwich bread or 1 large baked potato
1 apple or peach and a garden salad
3 to 4 ounces of lean deli sliced turkey breast for sandwich and 8 ounces of nonfat or low-fat fruit-flavored yogurt or 3 to 4 ounces broiled skinless chicken breast
1 teaspoon of regular mayonnaise or 1 tablespoon of diet mayonnaise on sandwich, or 1 tablespoon regular Italian or Catalina dressing on the salad or 2 tablespoons of diet dressing of the same type for salad

3 p.m.
Snack:  8 ounces of nonfat fruit-flavored yogurt
3 graham crackers or 1/3 cup high fiber cereal

5:30-6 p.m.
30 to 45 minutes of walking, stairstepping or any aerobic activity

7 p.m.
Dinner
1 cup pasta noodles or 2/3 cup rice
½ cup light fruit cocktail or applesauce (natural) and 1 cup of steamed broccoli or asparagus
1-2 ounces of broiled fish filet or 1-2 ounces of canned tuna in water for a topping on a salad or as tuna salad
1 teaspoon of regular margarine or 1 tablespoon of diet margarine for the steamed vegetables, pasta or rice; or the same amount of regular or diet mayonnaise to mix into a tuna salad