Backed by Science…

According to Dr Vincent, highly respected health and wellness expert and founder of ‘activated phenolics, the world’s most potent antioxidants, there are five scientific ways to increase your body’s fat burning capability.

The arrival of winter means that many of us will put on some extra weight simply through eating warm comfort food and staying indoors,”

“Despite this, there are things you can do to help your body increase the amount of fat it burns.”

“For many people, summer bodies are built in winter, but for the rest of us, we just can’t seem to shed those excess kilos.   Or maybe our weight loss journey has reached a plateau where we can’t continue to lose more weight.”

“With science on our side, there are little things that we can do every day to turn our body into an effective fat burning machine!  Don’t get fooled by how simple these steps are because if you do them every day consistently, the effect is not insignificant!”

1. Stand up more

“Sitting too much is bad for your health, over long periods of time, sitting puts your body into a freezing zone when it comes to burning fat.  Simply changing your working routine by standing up during the afternoon at work can burn an extra 174 calories!,” Dr Vincent said.

“Not to mention, standing up helps to fix your posture and not only it makes you look better (and taller), it also helps your lungs to function better.  It helps your breathing, which leads to better energy and a more efficient fat burning system.”

2. Plan your meals

“We know that weight loss is a mathematical problem, calories in vs calories out.  But do you know that different macros have different effects on our metabolic system?,” Dr Vincent said.

“Learn a new term: TEF – Thermic Effect of Food.  Basically it is the amount of calories required to digest, absorb and process the nutrients in your meal.

“Protein causes the largest rise in TEF. It increases your metabolic rate by 15–30%, compared to 5–10% for carbs and 0–3% for fats.

“While we do still need carbs and fats, we can always swap it around.  Plan for your meals to be richer in carbs and fat around breakfast and lunch and aim for a more protein based meal for dinner.

“Plus planning helps to prevent you overeating at dinner. One study found that people were likely to eat around 441 fewer calories per day when protein made up 30% of their diet. So when we know that we are going to just sit on the couch after dinner, having a protein rich dinner means that we put our body at work and burning calories while we watch Netflix.”

“TEF meal examples include:

• Eating scramble eggs for breakfast instead of banana bread or muffin

• Having roast chicken with broccoli for dinner instead of mashed potato with gravy

• Use more lentils and legumes instead of potato in your soup

• Add nuts, seeds, or beans to your salad instead of croutons

• Snack on seeds and nuts instead of chocolates, biscuits or lollies

• Have cheese for dessert instead of cakes

3. Drink more water

“This is a very effective little trick!  It works both psychologically and physiologically!,” Dr Vincent said.

“Firstly, 50% of the time when you think you are hungry, you are actually just thirsty? So instead of reaching for a pack of chips, drink a glass of water first and wait 10 minutes. Chances are, the “hunger” will pass.

“By drinking water, we are also less likely to drink sugary drinks or alcohol, which automatically reduces our calorie intake.

“Drinking water before a meal helps to reduce the chance of over eating because water fills you up on empty calories.  One study of overweight adults found that those who drank two glasses of water before their meals lost 44% more weight than those who didn’t.

“Physiologically, drinking water also helps to speed up your metabolism.  Studies have shown that drinking two glasses of water increases our resting metabolism by 10–30% for about an hour.”

4. Include phenolics in your diet

“Phenolic antioxidants help to convert some of the fat stored in your body into free fatty acids, which may increase fat burning by 10–17%,”

“These metabolism-boosting properties may help prevent the dreaded weight loss plateau that occurs due to a decrease in metabolism.

“Phenolics such as Activated Phenolics also help your cells to produce more energy which further boos your metabolic rate, especially in the morning, because the metabolic rate our body registers in the morning will determine the metabolic rate throughout the day.

“Adding Activated Phenolics into the water we sips throughout the day also helps us to drink more water.”

5. High Intensity work out

“We know that being active and exercising is good for our body and helps us to lose weight, however certain types of work out are more effective in increasing our fat burning capability,” Dr Vincent said.

“High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is a series of exercises that involve quick and intense bursts of activities. These can also include low impact high intensity interval exercise for those who prefer exercises that are less impactful on the joints.

“This type of exercise can help you burn more fat by increasing your metabolic rate. It also helps to keep your metabolic rate at a higher level even after your workout is done.

“HIIT is also great for people who are busy and pressed for time because it is significantly shorter than the regular exercise or cycling class.”