Trying to Boost Your Metabolism? An Expert Says These Are the 4 Things That Actually Work

One of the best ways to improve your metabolism is by being more physically active. "When you exercise, you're burning more calories," Dr. Arad said. You can and should also begin to strength train in order to build more muscle. "If you build more muscle and you have more muscles that require energy, then you're going to increase your metabolism," he said.

If you aren't familiar with strength training, this four-week beginner's program is a great starting point.

Another simple way to boost your metabolism, according to Dr. Arad, is to focus on eating more healthy fats. He explained that eating more fat makes it "much harder for your body to digest, to break down, and to store." The example Dr. Arad provided was eating 100 calories' worth of avocado. "Once it gets to your blood and presented to your cells, it's not 100 calories anymore. It's more like 60 or 70 because your body worked very hard to break down the fat," he said.

Here's a list of healthy fats you can start incorporating into your diet.

Along with eating more healthy fats, Dr. Arad said to also increase your protein intake because it will be harder for your body to digest, break down, and store.

Here are some foods that are high in protein.

Unlike protein and fat, "the amount of energy that it requires for the body to break down sugar, to process sugar, is actually very small," Dr. Arad said. Take a 100-calorie banana, for example. "Almost all of those 100 calories will end up in your blood and be presented to the cell, and the cell can either burn it or can store it," he explained. For people who aren't very active, those calories will end up getting stored as fat.

In order to learn more about your metabolism, Dr. Arad recommends getting a resting metabolic test (typically around $250, but rates will vary), which is offered at places like the Mount Sinai Physiolab and Fitnescity.