4 Metabolism Myths, Busted

There are probably as many myths about your metabolism as there are truths. Some of the erroneous information has been around so long and so widely promoted that many believe it to be true. Here are 4 myths commonly accepted as truth about metabolism:

1. Never skip breakfast
2. Hot peppers burn more calories
3. Caffeine boosts your metabolism
4. A pound of muscle burns 100 calories per day

Never skip breakfast

The advice here has always been to eat breakfast within an hour after arising to get your metabolism revved up from your night of fasting. The truth is it is not as important that you eat as it is what you eat.

Tip! Try a few situps, and other exercises that encourage a full range of motion. These kinds of exercises keep your body flexible, which becomes important as you get older and want to be able to reach things you drop on the floor.

You don't need the saturated fat and sugar found in most baked goods. The spike in calories burned by your metabolism from eating a doughnut isn't enough to offset the additional calories ingested.

Hot peppers burn more calories

Tip! Setting up an exercise area at home or home gym can be an attractive option for those who either don't have the time, the will, or the money to go to a professional gym. Many exercises can be done in the home and one can still achieve whatever fitness level they desire provided they put in the effort.

While it is true that hot peppers burn calories, a presentation from a recent study from Experimental Biology suggests mild peppers have the same calorie potential without the mouth-singeing agony.

 Mild peppers contain the compound dihydrocapsiate (DCT) while hot peppers have capsaicin in them. The study found the group eating mild peppers had about the same metabolic boost as the group eating hot peppers and about twice of the placebo group. Mild peppers include bell, banana, pimentos and rellenos. Use them in stir-frys and salads.

Tip! Although it is tempting, avoid strenuous exercise when you're feeling under the weather. A rigorous workout inhibits the body from using its resources to effectively heal itself and stave off infection or illness.

Caffeine boosts your metabolism

Drinking black coffee and tea provides a small caffeine boost, but if you get caffeine from energy drinks, you are better off not getting any boost at all. When all that sugar hits your bloodstream, abundant amounts of insulin are released and what your body can't use at that time is stored as fat - belly fat.

If you want to burn more calories, drink more water. Increasing your water consumption can burn an additional 17,400 calories per year, or about 5 pounds.

A pound of muscle burns 100 calories per day

This myth has been greatly over-exaggerated. Actually while at rest, muscle burns about 6 calories per pound of muscle per hour. However that is still three times the amount that fat burns in the same amount of time - at just 2 calories per pound. So it still pays to lose body fat and gain muscle through exercising-- it is just that the number of calories burned won't be as great as reported in the media.

Tip! When working out, a great tip to recover quicker from a brutal workout is to lightly exercise the same muscles the next day. You should use a weight that is around twenty percent of the max weight you can lift.

These are just 4 of the more popular myths that have perpetuated themselves over the years. To increase your metabolic rate, it still comes down to eating healthy foods in the correct portions consistently at the same times, along with cardio and strength training exercise.

The spike in calories burned by your metabolism from eating a doughnut isn't enough to offset the additional calories ingested.

The study found the group eating mild peppers had about the same metabolic boost as the group eating hot peppers and about twice of the placebo group. Actually while at rest, muscle burns about 6 calories per pound of muscle per hour. That is still three times the amount that fat burns in the same amount of time - at just 2 calories per pound. It still pays to lose body fat and gain muscle through exercising-- it is just that the number of calories burned won't be as great as reported in the media.