In 2013, I made a decision to overhaul the foods that were going into my body, and made a conscious effort to ensure that I was consuming good and nourishing foods. Throughout the year, I maintained a healthier diet by eliminating a lot of "bad" fats and "bad" sugars from my diet. As a result, I noticed an increase in energy and metabolism, and a decrease in kgs, which wasn't the main goal, but a nice bonus.
in 2014, I am proud to say that I have maintained that lifestyle change, and have strengthened my immune system. I owe it to the lifestyle choices I have, and continue to make, and I wanted to share the ways in which I have boosted my metabolism and strengthened my immune system with you all.
1. Eat breakfast
You know when I was at school, they taught us that this was the most important meal of the day. I was like, blah blah, can't hurt to skip this on the daily, right? What harm can it do? Well, actually it can be detrimental! Not only are you sabotaging your weight loss (if that's your goal), you're also slowing down your metabolism by doing so. You could even end up gaining weight, because your body thinks you're starving. I'm sure you've heard of all this before, but let me reiterate this - do not skip breakfast!!! I typically eat for breakfast
Sanitarium Organic Weetbix with some
Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almond Milk. Sometimes, I sprinkle some
Breakfast Plus Muesli on top.
2. Eat Fish
This can be in the form of Tuna, Salmon, Mackerel, etc, but whatever your choice, make sure to include it in your weekly diet! They are rich in omega-3 fats, which reduce inflammation, increase airflow and protect your lungs from colds and respiratory infections. I try to include 2 - 3 servings per week to reap the benefits.
3. Drink Green Tea
I LOVE Green Tea, it's one of my absolute favourite beverages. This has a myriad of benefits such as boosting your metabolism as it contains catechins, which have been shown to also have anti-inflammatory effects, anti-cancer properties, and may help control cholesterol levels. Drinking 3 cups a day will also help burn fat. My favourite to drink is
Green Tea with Lemon from Twinings.
4. Add chilli to your meals
Now I know this might not be everyone's cuppa, but for me, this helped with my metabolism and immune system immensely. It also aids in digestion and helps relieve migraines, muscle, joint and nerve pain. I add chilli flakes to my meals, by sprinkling just a bit of it over the top of my meals to add a bit of spice and flavour to the meal. The chilli flakes I buy are the ones by
MasterFoods from Coles.
5. Don't skip meals
In an effort to lose
weight, some people purposely skip a meal in order to achieve that. I am
telling you - don't!! It's so important to ensure your allowing
nutrients in your body, often, otherwise you are messing up your
metabolism, in turn confusing your body's ability to burn fat, and
tricking your body into thinking it's starving (which is why you should
not skip breakfast!). This will slow your metabolism down and actually
make you gain weight, much like I said about not skipping breakfast! I
eat smaller meals, to keep my metabolism running, and always carry a
snack with me like a nut bar (my favourite is is the
Be Natural trail bars in Berry.) to keep hunger at bay.
So hope this info gave you some insight into what has helped my metabolism and immune system. If there are any health tips you have, feel free to share them in the comments down below!
Til next time, take care and cheers xox
