Make strength training part of a well-rounded exercise program that includes activities to get your heart pumping. What to do: Lift weights for stronger bones and muscles. Most of the time, your brain, heart, kidneys, liver, and lungs account for most of your metabolism. Plus, when not in active use, muscles burn very few calories. That is not enough to make a big difference in the number of calories you burn. Most regular exercisers only gain a few pounds (kilograms) of muscle. So will building more muscle not boost your metabolism? Yes, but only by a small amount. Myth #2: Adding muscle will help you lose weight. Do not let exercise give you an excuse to overindulge in high-calorie foods and drinks. What to do: Exercise for your health and refuel with healthy foods.

If you load up on calories after a workout, thinking your body will keep burning calories the rest of the day, you risk weight gain. Once you stop moving, your metabolism will go back to its resting rate. You might keep burning extra calories for an hour or so after that, but the aftereffects of exercise stop there. That increased calorie burn lasts as long as your workout. It is true that you burn more calories when you exercise, especially when you get your heart rate up with activities like biking or swimming. Myth #1: Exercise boosts your metabolism long after you stop. Here are the facts on 6 metabolism myths. If you think you are burning more calories than you actually are, you could end up eating more than you should.

Unfortunately, there are more myths about boosting metabolism than tactics that work. It is a common belief that raising your metabolism helps you burn more calories and increase weight loss. You rely on your metabolism to breathe, think, digest, circulate blood, keep warm in the cold, and stay cool in the heat. Your metabolism is the process your body uses to make and burn energy from food.

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