How to Increase My BMR Rate for Better Health and Weight Management

January 14, 2026 •

4 min read

According to the Cleveland Clinic, a healthy way to increase your BMR is to build lean muscle mass. This comprehensive guide explores science-backed strategies on how to increase my BMR rate through impactful changes in exercise, nutrition, and lifestyle, helping you manage weight and energy levels more effectively.

Quick Summary

This article outlines proven strategies to elevate your basal metabolic rate by focusing on muscle growth, dietary protein intake, high-intensity exercise, proper hydration, and adequate sleep. It contrasts different workout types and offers actionable tips to optimize your body's energy expenditure.

Key Points

Build Muscle Mass: Lean muscle tissue is more metabolically active than fat, meaning it burns more calories at rest. Strength training is the most effective way to increase your BMR long-term.
Incorporate HIIT: High-intensity interval training (HIIT) significantly elevates your metabolism for hours after the workout, a phenomenon known as the afterburn effect or EPOC.
Eat More Protein: Protein has a higher thermic effect than carbohydrates or fats, requiring more energy for digestion and boosting your metabolic rate.
Stay Hydrated: Proper hydration is essential for efficient metabolic function. Even mild dehydration can slow your metabolism.
Prioritize Sleep: Chronic sleep deprivation disrupts key metabolic hormones like ghrelin and leptin and can lower your resting metabolic rate.
Manage Stress: High cortisol levels from chronic stress can negatively impact metabolism, so incorporating stress-reducing activities is beneficial.
Avoid Starvation Diets: Eating too few calories forces your body into a conservation state, slowing your metabolism down. Opt for nutrient-dense meals instead.

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) represents the minimum number of calories your body needs to perform essential functions at rest, such as breathing, blood circulation, and cell production. While genetics, age, and gender play roles in determining your BMR, you can influence it through specific lifestyle changes. The most impactful and healthy method for increasing your BMR is boosting your lean muscle mass, as muscle tissue is more metabolically active than fat tissue.

The Role of Exercise: Strength Training vs. Cardio

Exercise is a cornerstone of any plan to boost metabolism, but not all workouts are created equal for increasing BMR specifically. Focusing on resistance training, high-intensity interval training (HIIT), and non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) offers the most significant returns.

Why Strength Training is a BMR Game-Changer

Strength training, such as weight lifting or bodyweight exercises, directly promotes muscle growth. More muscle mass means more calories burned at rest, a fundamental way to elevate your BMR over time. Consistency is key; a study in overweight women showed that incorporating resistance training with a calorie-reduced diet helped prevent a decline in muscle mass and metabolic rate. Regular resistance training, targeting major muscle groups at least twice a week, can lead to a sustained increase in resting metabolic rate.

The Power of High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

HIIT involves short bursts of intense anaerobic exercise followed by brief recovery periods. This method is highly effective because it triggers a phenomenon known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), or "the afterburn effect." This means your body continues to burn calories at an elevated rate for hours after the workout is finished. HIIT can raise your metabolic rate for up to 24 hours, giving you a powerful metabolic boost in less time than traditional aerobic training.

Comparison of BMR-Boosting Exercises


Exercise Type	Primary Mechanism for BMR Increase	Duration of Elevated Metabolism (EPOC)	Primary Calorie Burn
Strength Training	Builds lean muscle mass, which is more metabolically active than fat.	Up to 72-96 hours after a high-intensity session.	Builds long-term, resting calorie-burn potential.
HIIT	Triggers significant EPOC, burning calories at an elevated rate post-workout.	Up to 8-24 hours after the session, depending on intensity.	High caloric expenditure during and after the workout.
Steady-State Cardio	Elevates metabolic rate only during the activity itself.	Minimal EPOC effect, dropping off soon after exercise ends.	Burns calories mostly during the activity.
NEAT	Accumulates small bursts of activity throughout the day.	No significant EPOC, but increases total daily energy expenditure.	Moderate but consistent daily calorie burn.

The Dietary Connection to a Higher BMR

Your diet plays a crucial role in metabolism. Beyond fueling your body for exercise, strategic eating habits can directly impact your BMR.

Prioritize Protein: The thermic effect of food (TEF) is the energy required to digest, absorb, and process nutrients. Protein has the highest TEF of all macronutrients, meaning your body burns more calories to process it than it does for carbs or fats. Increasing your protein intake also helps preserve muscle mass, which is vital during weight loss. Aim for a quality protein source in each meal.
Stay Hydrated: Even mild dehydration can slow your metabolic rate. Drinking plenty of water is essential for your body's metabolic processes to function properly. Some studies suggest that drinking cold water can temporarily increase your metabolic rate as your body expends energy to warm it to body temperature.
Avoid Crash Dieting: Severely restricting calories sends your body into "starvation mode," where it slows your metabolism to conserve energy. This is counterproductive for long-term BMR improvement. Instead, focus on eating a balanced, nutrient-dense diet with enough calories to fuel your body and your workouts.
Embrace Nutrient-Dense Foods: Whole foods like fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains provide your body with the nutrients it needs to run efficiently. Certain foods, like chili peppers containing capsaicin, may also provide a temporary, though small, metabolic boost.

Lifestyle Factors That Influence Your Metabolism

Your BMR isn't just about what you eat and how you move; lifestyle habits are also critical.

Get Enough Sleep: Insufficient sleep can significantly disrupt the hormones that regulate appetite and metabolism. Sleep deprivation leads to lower levels of the satiety hormone leptin and higher levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin, while also impacting insulin resistance. Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night to support optimal metabolic function.
Manage Stress: Chronic stress elevates cortisol levels, a hormone that can slow your metabolism and increase fat storage, particularly in the abdominal area. Incorporating stress-reducing activities like meditation, deep breathing, or gentle yoga can help manage cortisol and support a healthy metabolism.
Increase NEAT: Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy expended for everything we do that isn't sleeping, eating, or sports-like exercise. Small, frequent movements throughout the day can add up to a significant increase in daily calorie burn. Simple strategies include taking the stairs, standing up regularly, or fidgeting.

Conclusion: A Holistic Approach for a Lasting Boost

While genetics and age are fixed factors, you can effectively increase your BMR by focusing on a combination of muscle-building exercise, strategic nutrition, and healthy lifestyle habits. Building lean muscle mass through strength training is the most powerful long-term strategy, complemented by the post-workout metabolic boost from HIIT. Supporting these efforts with a protein-rich diet, adequate hydration, sufficient sleep, and stress management provides a holistic approach to optimizing your metabolism. Rather than relying on quick fixes, consistency across these areas will lead to lasting improvements in your BMR, body composition, and overall well-being. Consult with a healthcare provider to ensure a personalized plan that fits your health and goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

BMR, or Basal Metabolic Rate, is the minimum number of calories your body burns at complete rest to sustain basic life functions. Metabolism is a broader term encompassing all the chemical processes that convert food into energy, including BMR, digestion, and physical activity.

While certain foods, particularly protein-rich and spicy foods, can cause a small, temporary increase in metabolic rate due to the thermic effect of food, their impact on overall BMR is minor compared to regular exercise and muscle mass. Focus on a healthy, balanced diet rather than relying solely on specific 'fat-burning' foods.

Muscle tissue requires more energy to maintain than fat tissue. By increasing your muscle mass through resistance training, you increase the number of calories your body burns at rest, which provides a long-term, consistent boost to your BMR.

Lack of adequate sleep can negatively impact your metabolism by disrupting appetite-regulating hormones (leptin and ghrelin) and affecting insulin sensitivity. This hormonal imbalance can lead to a lower metabolic rate and increased risk of weight gain.

Yes, proper hydration is crucial for optimal metabolic function. Drinking water has been shown to cause a temporary increase in metabolic rate, a phenomenon known as water-induced thermogenesis. Drinking cold water has an even greater effect.

For increasing your BMR, HIIT is generally more effective than steady-state cardio. HIIT triggers a greater 'afterburn effect' (EPOC), keeping your metabolism elevated for a longer period post-workout. Regular cardio burns calories primarily during the activity itself.

Yes, drastically cutting calories can slow down your metabolism. When your body detects a severe calorie deficit, it enters 'starvation mode' and lowers its energy expenditure to conserve fuel, making weight loss more difficult in the long run.