A calorie is a measurement for energy required to heat 1g of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit. This measurement was used by the nutritionists ever since 1890s and it shows us the amount of energy we bring into our body through a certain diet.
How does our body work?
The organism uses chemical energy for our everyday activities created by the combustion of protein, fat and carbohydrates. Each nutrient has its calorific value: 1g of protein = 4.1 calorie; 1g of fat= 9.3 calories and 1g of carbohydrates = 4.1 calories. Fat is most efficient to digest because it easily reaches the wall of the smaller intestine and the animal protein is easier to digest than vegetables. Therefore the glucose is easily absorbed and during that process the fibers are least digested. The fibers should be consumed about 35 – 40 g per day because they give us the least energy. Every 100 calories that we consume from carbohydrates our body consumes just 5 – 10 calories. Our body uses even less fat and every 100 calories of protein we take our body consumes just 20 – 30 calories for the digestion process.
First thing you need to do before deciding to burn of our calories with more physical activities is to improve your eating habits. This includes not only the amount of food that you bring in, but the quality of it as well as the certain balance of chemical substances. It is necessary to provide your body with adequate nutrients in order to fulfill your body with every ingredient needed for normal functioning.
Stimulate the fat burning process
There are some nutrients that stimulate the process of burning fat and in combination with physical activities they lead to much faster weight loss. It is important to know the difference between the calories from a glass of beer and a glass of milk. For example calcium is showing some efficient effect on the weight loss because it is stimulating the cells to release more fat.
- Fiber – The food that is rich with fiber is a great stimulant and you can find it in various kinds of cereals. Grains are normally consumed for breakfast since this meal is a very important part of the day. It is recommended that your breakfast consists of integrated flakes like oat, barley or rye flakes, brown rice and buckwheat…
- Vegetables contain carbohydrate which is slowly released into our body and they prolong the consumption time of fat. You can recognize healthy vegetable by their intense colors.
- Fish should be consumed 10 gram per day as this is a good daily dose.
- Berries – particularly wild blueberries, cranberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries… Berries are one of the most important sources of antioxidants.
- Green tea contains EGCG substance which helps our brain and nervous system to run faster and burn more calories. In a way, EGCG works similar to caffeine except it doesn’t increase your heart rate.
- Caffeine stimulates the release of fatty acids and also suppresses the appetite.
- Milk is rich in calcium and acts as a trigger for the metabolism. Milk is also a rich source of carbohydrates that can speed up the metabolism and help maintain low levels of insulin after a meal.
Speed up your metabolism
Certain nutrients have a high thermogenic effect, so this means that you will burn calories while you chew. Others contain nutrients and compounds that can stimulate the metabolic fire.
Low-fat dairy products – Protein has a high thermogenic effect. You can burn around 30% of the calories that this food contains during the digestion process. By consuming 300 calories chicken breast you burn 90 calories for its digestion.
Lentil – One cup contain 35 percent of the daily requirements of iron. The majority of people have 20% less iron than required so this is a good way to improve your health. When this component is missing, your metabolism slows down because your body is not getting enough ingredients for normal functioning.
Chili peppers – Capsaicin is a compound which is produced a chili pepper which have impact on our body temperature and lead to additional melting of calories. You can eat them raw, cooked, dried or powdered.
Pistachios – They contain the right balance of healthy fats, protein and fiber which altogether speed up your metabolism and make you feel full for a longer period of time.
Burning the calories with fruits
Fruits represent good antioxidants and they have a lot of beneficial ingredients which makes them an extremely healthy food. They also contain carbohydrates that are slowly released except for the grapes and bananas. For fat burning pineapple is an excellent choice because has a large amount of ingredients as well as one very important enzyme – bromelain. It stimulates the metabolism and influences the fat burning process. Papaya also has an interesting enzyme named papain which encourages the digestion process and the exchange of substances in our body.
Sweet cherries – This fruit helps us to improve the physiological and mental functions as they remove physical and mental stress. Sour cherries even have good influence on our mood. Because they have large amount of antioxidants they are good for preventing heart diseases, cancer development and they can improve the health of our bones. It is better to consume twenty cherries a day than using aspirin if you have pain from arthritis.
Cherry seeds – The seeds contain a small amount of amygdalin also known as the vitamin B17. It is believed that it has a positive impact on reducing the tumor and preventing the spread of cancer. This vitamin also helps in relieving the pain caused by cancerous processes.
Increase training intensity – In order to burn more calories and stimulate the process of weight loss it is necessary to gradually increase your physical activities. A lot of run the same pace throughout their whole training and therefore they don’t make a lot of progress. It is necessary not only to stimulate burning calories during the run but the burning after the workout as well. One way of increasing the intensity of running is by changing the tempo of jogging every two minutes.
Increase the distance – By increasing the distance of your running route you will use more calories. Everyone knows that, but a lot of runners do not run a significant length during the week. There are a lot of changes happening in your body when you run on longer distances. Your body begins to change the way it consumes the ‘’fuel’’ you bring in with a healthy diet. Even the contraction of your muscles changes as they adapt to a new way of functioning. By making yourself run in moments of fatigue at the end of your workout, you are increasing your endurance and boosting the number of burned calories after the training.
Run more often –Running more frequently will improve your metabolism and help you burn more calories. In order to achieve the best results, the number of training should be increased to 8 – 10 times a week. This means that some days you will have to run 2 times. Always keep in mind that the best way to do this is by gradually increasing your activities.
When you start to combine these principles of weight loss you will notice significant results.
Catherine Daniels, fitness enthusiast, promotes fruit enriched diets and healthy living. She likes eating fruit during work hours and sending gift to friend and recommends you do it too, for example, via fruit gift basket delivery.