Women with great bodies have a dirty little secret.
Sure, they work out and eat well — but they also sneakily burn hundreds more calories than everyone else.
From the outside, these women don’t seem to be doing anything particularly strenuous. But you wouldn’t believe how many straightforward things they do to burn calories. And it’s real easy to miss the opportunities if you’re not looking for them.
Here are quick, simple and science-backed things you can do right now to start losing weight immediately.
1. Take vitamin D
According to a recent study in the British Journal of Nutrition, women who were deficient in vitamin D lost weight more slowly than women who took a supplement of 2,000 miligrams of vitamin D daily.
2. Drink coffee
Studies have found that caffeine increases the rate at which you burn calories. Just avoid the extra heavy cream and full fat milk.
3. Sleep more
Getting fewer than four hours of sleep over an extended period of time slows the metabolism. Experts recommend aiming for between seven and nine.
4. Do things by hand
Wash your dishes, vacuum, or cook dinner. We consider it a luxury to have tasks done for us, but doing some of these for yourself takes considerable energy.
5. Use a fitness tracker
Every week, aim to take a few more steps than you did the last week.
6. Eat small amounts and often
For most people, the body uses up more energy digesting smaller meals every few hours than by eating the same number of calories in two or three sittings.
7. Move briskly
Walk like you’re late for a meeting.
8. Laugh
It burns up to 50 calories if you laugh for 10 to 15 minutes per day.
9. Eat breakfast
You send your body a signal that you’re not starving, so it starts burning fat — even when you’re just doing normal activities. Try eating scrambled egg whites or oatmeal with fruit for breakfast and you’ll notice that you’ll hit the snack pouch less throughout the day.
10. Time yourself
Spend the last five minutes of each hour (set your computer timer) up and moving around. Add that all up and you would’ve burned an extra 100 calories a day.
11. Fill up on fiber
Low-carb, high-fiber foods take more time to digest than other foods, leaving you feeling fuller longer and less likely to snack. I personally enjoy spinach, broccoli, asparagus, and cauliflower.
12. Go out of your way
At work, take the long way to the restroom — or even go up one flight of stairs.
13. Fidget
You can burn up to 350 more calories a day than someone who remains stationary, according to a study at the Mayo Clinic. The impulse to fidget may be hardwired, but nonfidgeters can imitate it: Tap your feet, pace, or move restlessly in your seat.
14. Stash flats in your bag
No woman is going to slip on sneakers with their work outfit to go home, but this is a happy medium. You might not run a marathon in ballet slippers, but at least you can move quickly.
15. Don’t eat late at night
It can interrupt sleep and may induce you to skip breakfast — bad for your metabolism.
16. Straighten up
Good posture not only makes you look taller and leaner, but it strengthens your abdominal muscle.
17. Drink more
Dehydrated people experience a drop in their metabolic rate. Drinking water throughout the day caused metabolic rates to increase by about 30 percent in a German study. The goal: eight cups a day.
18. Beware of sugar
It triggers the body to release insulin, which then either transplants sugar to the cells to be used as energy — or stored as fat. So stay away from sugar as much as you can.
19. Squat
When you pick up something from the floor, keep your back straight and bend at the knees, not the waist. This protects your back and tones your legs.
20. Chew gum
It burns a few calories — and it keeps you from mindlessly grazing, especially when you’re cooking.
21. Sleep better
A poor night’s sleep causes people to chose less-nutritious foods, according to a study at the University of Pennsylvania. Another study showed that sleep-deprived people simply move less.
22. Walk and talk
Don’t sit still when you take a phone call. At work, wear a headset.
23. Switch sides
Whether you’re carrying a heavy bag on your shoulder or a child on your hip, swapping sides every five minutes works more muscles.
24. Cook your own food
It’s often healthier, and by the time you’ve made a meal and cleaned up, you’ve been on your feet a half-hour more than you would have waiting for takeout.
25. Relax
Stress causes the body to release cortisol, which causes more calories to be stored as fat, especially in your abdomen.
26. Watch less television
Adults who halved their television viewing time (by using an electronic lock-out system) not only burned an extra 119 calories per day, but did so without altering what they ate.