Simply put, metabolism is the amount of energy or calories our bodies need to function on a daily basis. The faster your metabolism, the more calories or energy you burn during your daily activities. When this process of generating, storing and transmitting power is out of whack, your body may become vulnerable to metabolic imbalances, which can lead to health problems. Diabetes is a classic example of the body’s inability to metabolize blood sugar properly.

“Keeping your metabolism working at a healthy rate is so important to daily functions,” says Colleen Alrutz, health and fitness manager at Piedmont Newnan Hospital. “Exercise and strength training play a key role in boosting metabolic rates and keeping weight off, especially as we age.”

Alrutz says a man's metabolism usually runs about 10-15% faster than a woman's, mainly because men have more muscle mass. Unfortunately, women have to work a little harder to see the same results.

Alrutz shares these five tips to boost your metabolism:

1. Exercise more. Add interval training to your cardio routine and burn more calories in less time. For example, run for a minute, then walk for two minutes. Repeat this pattern for 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Weight train. By adding muscle mass to your body, you can burn more calories at rest. Make sure you choose a total-body strength routine.

3. Don't skip meals, especially breakfast. You need to keep the furnace burning, and you actually burn calories as you digest food.

4. Eat fat-burning foods. Fat-burning ingredients like protein, spicy peppers and green tea have been proven to bump up metabolism. Eat some form of these foods, especially protein, at every meal. Protein is especially important: It takes more calories to digest than other foods and also helps the body build fat-burning lean muscle tissue.

5. Get a good night’s sleep every night. Studies have shown that lack of sleep affects activity in the brain’s frontal lobe, which may decrease your impulse control and decision-making ability.

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