Hello guys!
Congrats on making it to week 7!
The idea is that the changes we are making in our lives become permanent. The real challenge is to add every weekly challenge to our lifestyle until it is not a challenge anymore and it’s just simply natural for us to be healthier.
Don’t forget to send me your weekly pictures for the chance to win the weekly prizes! Or tag me on IG using #rosaacostafitnesschallenge.
Even when you think you haven’t made much progress or the scale doesn’t show much, remember that you see yourself everyday so its a lot harder for you to notice the changes. I bet you get compliments, asking if you lost weight, or simply telling you look a little different. That right there is a sign that you are really showing results. That’s why is really important that you take the pics. Make a collage and put them one to the other from week 1 until now and let me be the judge! You guys are often too hard on yourselves and don’t give yourself enough credit for the amazing job you been doing the past 7 weeks.
Congrats to our winner IG @ceeemekillum she’s getting free XPS supplements.
Challenge:
Work on speeding your metabolism:
- The Elusive Metabolism Boost — Boosting metabolism is the holy grail of weight watchers everywhere, but how fast your body burns calories depends on several factors. Some people inherit a speedy metabolism. Men tend to burn more calories than women, even while resting. And for most people, metabolism slows steadily after age 40. Although you can’t control your age, gender, or genetics, there are other ways to get a boost.
- Build Muscle — Our bodies constantly burn calories, even when we’re doing nothing. This resting metabolic rate is much higher in people with more muscle. Every pound of muscle uses about 6 calories a day just to sustain itself, while each pound of fat burns only 2 calories daily. That small difference can add up over time. In addition, after a bout of resistance training, muscles are activated all over your body, increasing your average daily metabolic rate.
- Sinless Snacking — Eating more really can help you lose weight — eating more often, that is. When you eat large meals with many hours in between, your metabolism slows down between meals. Having a small meal or snack every 3 to 4 hours keeps your metabolism cranking, so you burn more calories over the course of a day. Several studies have also shown that people who snack regularly eat less at meal time.
- Spice Up Your Meals — Spicy foods contain chemical compounds that can kick the metabolism into a higher gear. Cooking foods with a tablespoon of chopped red or green chili pepper can boost your metabolic rate. The effect is likely temporary, but if you eat spicy foods often, the benefits may add up. For a quick boost, spice up pasta dishes, chili, and stews with red-pepper flakes.
- Power Up with Protein — The body burns many more calories digesting protein than it does for fat or carbohydrates. Although you want to eat a balanced diet, replacing some carbs with lean, protein-rich foods can boost metabolism at mealtime. Healthy sources of protein include lean beef, turkey, fish, white meat chicken, tofu, nuts, beans, eggs, and low-fat dairy products.
- Booster Shot: Black Coffee — If you’re a coffee drinker, you probably enjoy the increased energy and concentration that follows your morning ritual. Taken in moderation, one of coffee’s benefits may be a short-term increase in your metabolic rate. Caffeine can help you feel less tired and even increase your endurance while you exercise.
- Recharge with Green Tea — Drinking green tea or oolong tea offers the combined benefits of caffeine and catechins, substances shown to rev up the metabolism for a couple hours. Research suggests that drinking two to four cups of either tea may push the body to burn 17% more calories during moderately intense exercise for a short period of time.
- Avoid Crash Diets — Crash diets — those involving eating fewer than 1,200 (if you’re a woman) or 1,800 (if you’re a man) calories a day — are disastrous for anyone hoping to quicken their metabolism. Although these diets may help you drop pounds (at the expense of good nutrition), a high percentage of the loss comes from muscle. The lower your muscle mass, the slower your metabolism. The final result is your body burns fewer calories (and gains weight faster) than the one you had before the diet.
- Best Bets — The impact of different foods and drinks on the metabolism is small compared to what you need for sustained weight loss. Your best bet for creating a mean calorie-burning machine is to build muscle and stay active. The more you move during the day, the more calories you burn.
When You Roll Out Of Bed:
- Eat (a good) breakfast Every. Single. Day. If you don’t, your body goes into starvation mode (it’s paranoid like that), so your metabolism slows to a crawl to conserve energy, Berardi says. And the heartier your first meal is, the better. In one study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, volunteers who got 22 to 55 percent of their total calories at breakfast gained only 1.7 pounds on average over four years. Those who ate zero to 11 percent of their calories in the morning gained nearly three pounds. In another study published in the same journal, volunteers who reported regularly skipping breakfast had 4.5 times the risk of obesity as those who took the time to eat.
- What should you be having? Morning munchies that are slow to digest and leave you feeling fuller longer. Try a mix of lean protein with complex carbohydrates and healthy fats, like this power breakfast, recommended by Berardi: an omelet made from one egg and two egg whites and a half cup of mixed peppers and onions, plus a half cup of cooked steel-cut oats mixed with a quarter cup of frozen berries and a teaspoon of omega-3-loaded fish oil.
- Hit the sack—early: When you sleep less than you should, you throw off the amounts of leptin and ghrelin — hormones that help regulate energy use and appetite — that your body produces. Researchers at Stanford University found that people who snoozed fewer than 7.5 hours per night experienced an increase in their body mass index. So make sure you get at least eight hours of rest.
Check if you are lacking on any of these tips and don’t forget to continue the work from week 1-6.
Good luck!!
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