As you age, your metabolism slows, making it more difficult to lose weight. However, this doesn’t mean you should just accept defeat and gain more weight as you get older. Excessive weight gain is linked to the development of obesity-related health problems like diabetes and heart disease.

Manage your weight naturally with these seven hacks for boosting your metabolism and burning more calories.

Drink more water

The results of a study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism suggest that drinking more water can help increase the rate at which a healthy individual burns calories.

Data from the study showed that drinking at least 17 ounces of water (or two tall glasses) helped increased the metabolic rates of volunteers by a whopping 30%!

Increasing your water intake by 1.5 liters per day (at least six cups) can help you burn an extra 17,400 calories in one year. This is equivalent to a weight loss of at least five pounds.

If you don’t like drinking water because it’s not as exciting as a glass of iced tea or soda, follow these tips to increase your water intake:

• Drink herbal tea. Tea can also help you stay hydrated, but avoid adding a lot of sweeteners, even natural ones like honey or maple syrup.
• Eat water-rich foods like cucumber, grapefruit, watermelon or zucchini.
• Make refreshing fruit- or veggie-infused water by adding sliced vegetables (like celery, cucumbers and ginger) or fresh fruits (like grapefruit, lemon and strawberries) to a pitcher of water. Letting the fruits and vegetables steep longer gives the water a richer flavor.
• Use a marked water bottle. If you’re forgetful, marked bottles will help you reach your personal water goal daily.

Add more fiber to your diet

Eating more fiber-rich whole foods like beans and other legumes, fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains will make you feel fuller longer. Consuming foods rich in fiber will also help curb your cravings for junk foods.

Research has found that women who eat fiber-rich foods gain the least amount of weight over time. Women should consume at least 21 to 25 grams of fiber daily, while men need at least 30 to 38 grams of fiber.

Fruits and vegetables with the most fiber include:

• Apples
• Broccoli
• Green peas
• Pears
• Raspberries
• Turnip greens

If you don’t want to gain belly fat, eat a good balance of foods rich in fat, fiber and protein daily to keep your hormone levels in check.

Eat more mild peppers

Chili peppers are known for their capsaicin content, which gives these peppers a kick and also helps boost your metabolism.

However, study findings presented at the Experimental Biology meeting in Anaheim, California revealed that you can enjoy similar benefits by consuming dihydrocapsiate (DCT), the non-spicy cousin of capsaicin in chili peppers.

Researchers reported that volunteers who consumed the most DCT in an experiment experienced a metabolic boost that was almost double that observed in the placebo group.

Incorporate mustard into your diet

Consuming mustard also helps rev up your metabolism.

In a study published in the journal Human Nutrition. Clinical Nutrition, researchers discovered that consuming at least one teaspoon of mustard, which contains at least 5 calories, can help boost your metabolism by up to 25% for several hours after eating.

The scientists explained that these benefits can be attributed to capsaicin and allyl isothiocyanates, two phytochemicals that give mustard its unique flavor.

Exercise briskly for 2.5 minutes

If the thought of exercising for 30 minutes is already exhausting, you can try boosting your metabolism with a quick 2.5-minute burst of physical activity!

Research published in the journal Physiological Reports revealed that participants who did five 30-second bursts of max-effort cycling, followed by four minutes of rest, burned 200 extra calories in one day.

This means you only have to sweat for at least 2.5 minutes to enjoy a resting metabolism boost that can last for about 24 to 48 hours.

Try laughing more

A study that appeared in the International Journal of Obesity showed that genuine laughter is linked to a 10 to 20% increase in basal energy expenditure and resting heart-rate.

This means laughing genuinely for at least 10 to 15 minutes can burn at least 40 to 170 calories. It looks like its time to re-watch funny episodes of your favorite shows!

Keep your bedroom cool

Brown fat helps you stay warm by burning through your stores of “bad” fat.

A recent study published in the journal Diabetes revealed that turning on the air conditioning in your room can transform your stores of brown fat or “good” fat, which is stimulated by cold temperatures.

In the study, researchers observed volunteers who spent several weeks sleeping in bedrooms with varying temperatures:

• A neutral 75 F
• A cool 66 F
• A balmy 81 F

Results showed that after sleeping for four weeks at 66 F, the male participants had almost doubled their volumes of brown fat.

Work out every day and follow these tips to boost your metabolism naturally so you can maintain a healthy weight.

Sources:

HuffPost.com

Self.com

Prevention.com