How to Boost Your Metabolism in 9 Easy Steps

Photo by: R29

2. WORK UP A SWEAT. AGAIN. AND AGAIN. AND AGAIN.

It's not rocket science: When you work out, you lose weight. "Exercise affects metabolism better than any medicine we know of," says Isaacs. Not only because your body exerts more energy and therefore utilizes more (as in, that amazing pasta dinner you had last night) to get all those pushups done, but also because it also puts your metabolism into overdrive. "All exercise boosts ... more 

Photo by: R29

2. WORK UP A SWEAT. AGAIN. AND AGAIN. AND AGAIN.

It's not rocket science: When you work out, you lose weight. "Exercise affects metabolism better than any medicine we know of," says Isaacs. Not only because your body exerts more energy and therefore utilizes more (as in, that amazing pasta dinner you had last night) to get all those pushups done, but also because it also puts your metabolism into overdrive. "All exercise boosts metabolism," says Isaacs. "But it's crucial to not just do one kind - you need to build muscle with strength and resistance training as well as do cardio which can boost metabolism for 24 hours after." Basically, post-workout, your body keeps torching calories even when you're doing nada.

But, a word of caution: Don't get all gung-ho and then fall off the workout wagon. "Muscle is the deciding factor in metabolic rate because it's more metabolically active and burns more calories," says Isaacs. "Yo-yo dieters lose muscle and fat then g less