True Identity Ministries Blog

I thought I would share some Fitness By Faith tips with you for a few weeks on my Monday Blog. Since Metabolism seems to be a hot topic, let's start there. Many of us have a sluggish metabolism because of lifestyle choices we are making. And you know how it feels when your metabolism is sluggish. You feel slow, hungry, tired, cranky, and groggy. You and I want our metabolism working as quickly and as efficiently as possible. There are a few things that we can do to rev up our metabolism so to speak and I thought I would share them!


1. Exercise
It's important to understand that exercise has a dramatic effect on metabolism. The more active you are the higher your metabolism will be. Of course that means the less active you are the lower your metabolism will be. The higher your metabolism is the greater amount of calories your body burns even while at rest. That means if you increase your metabolism you can increase the amount of calories your body is burning even while you are sleeping. Sounds like easy weight loss to me.

2. Eat Breakfast
Breakfast is one of the most important meals you can eat during the day. Think of it this way, you basically have been fasting all night long. Your metabolism has slowed itself down throughout the night because you haven’t been moving or taking in calories. The morning meal is what is going to “break the fast”. That’s why we call it breakfast. When you eat after getting up it will give your metabolism a boost and force it into action for the day. It’s like pouring fuel on a flame. The longer you wait to eat the lower your metabolism will stay. Which brings us back to one of our important keys for eating smart and that’s eating frequently. Start your day with breakfast and then continue to eat frequently throughout the day.

3. Drink plenty of water
I simply cannot stress this point enough. When people ask me what the weight loss miracle would be I tell them its water. Water plays a crucial role in weight loss, healthy living, disease prevention, and increasing your metabolism. It’s one of the simplest things for us to do yet the one that seems to be most left out. You have to become very intentional about making sure you are drinking enough water each and every day. Drinking water can increase your metabolism by up to 30%! That is going to burn a lot of extra calories.
4. Get enough sleep
I always laugh when people say to me that they can live off of 4 hours of sleep each night. What I want to say to them is “if you think you can survive on that little of sleep, do you have any idea how great you would feel if you got the right amount?” Most people are so used to getting too little sleep that they don’t even realize how negatively it’s affecting how they feel, not to mention how their body is functioning. Most people who are sleep deprived are also more likely to eat more throughout the day. You are tired and so you eat to try and stay awake. You also are more inclined to making poor food choices. Eating isn’t the answer to sleep deprivation. If you have problems sleeping at night there are a few things you can try. Reduce your stress, exercise during the day, turn the lights and noise down low in the evenings, and most importantly don’t drink caffeine in the afternoons or at night.

5. Move more often
This one is a little different than exercise. Exercise will consist of a specifically set apart time that you dedicate just to being active. But you can also be intentional about moving around more all day long. In other words don’t fight that poor old lady for the front parking spot. Go ahead and park at the back and make the walk into the store. When you are at work try taking the stairs more often or walking up and down the halls during breaks. If you have a job that requires you to stay seated most of the day make sure that you take moving breaks every hour. The more you fidget and move the higher your metabolism will be and the more calories you will burn. So go ahead and get moving, it’s what your body was designed to do!


I think these are very practical principals every single one of us can begin applying. So why delay…let’s start today!

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Love,
Justeina