The sound of your alarm blares in your ears as you wait for your eyes to adjust. You roll over to turn off the harsh sound before you lose your sanity. You begin getting ready for your day when your stomach begins to grumble, reminding you that you need to grab some fuel. You quietly stumble into your kitchen searching for something to end your stomach’s incessant plea for sustenance. Searching through your fridge, you feel your hand reaching for bacon — and then it hits you! You’re on a weight loss journey. Before you fret, we have good news. Instead of reaching for something that could ruin your hard work and progress, consider using oils in your morning routine to help you drop weight fast.
Oils have helpful essential properties, but did you know they can act as fat-fighting agents? Try eating these three oils in the morning to successfully catapult your weight loss journey.
1. Peppermint oil
I had never used peppermint oil until a yoga session I attended during college. As I struggled to work my limbs into a pretzel pose, I looked up and saw the yoga instructor walking around the room with a bottle of peppermint oil. She announced, “Raise your right hand if you’d like me to rub some peppermint oil on your forehead.” She continued. “It will relax your muscles, soothe your soul and serve as a healing agent.” I raised my hand eagerly. After getting a swipe of peppermint oil on my forehead and wrists, I felt my body relax followed by a jolt of energy. The invigorating yet comforting smell relieved my stress and served as an immediate pick-me-up.
According to research published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, mint can be used for its’ anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antioxidant and vasoconstrictor effects. The antispasmodic aspect of peppermint oil can help prevent muscle spasms, thus giving you more endurance for your morning workout. Taking a dose of peppermint oil in the a.m. before doing your morning workout can help prevent muscle spasms, enabling you to burn more calories. By avoiding painful muscle spasms, you can focus on burning more fat during your workout instead of tending to achy muscles.
You can also try tossing a few drops of peppermint oil in your cup of morning tea for a natural energizer that can reduce fatigue and improve your concentration. By giving you an enhanced ability to concentrate, you can focus on your weight loss goals — and your minty treat! The warm tea combined with the peppermint oil will also help dissipate early morning gas in your stomach, which will help to keep you fuller for longer. That way, you can keep your eyes off those donuts your coworker loves to bring to work.
As an added benefit, the smell of peppermint oil can also stimulate and soothe your senses during your morning workout. Researchers discovered peppermint oil provided relaxation of bronchial smooth muscles, an increase in the ventilation and brain oxygen concentration, and a decrease in the blood lactate level during the study. Male athletes that mixed peppermint oil with water had an enhanced level of workout performance and better ventilation and brain oxygen, which meant they were able to fight off fatigue longer than those who didn’t consume the peppermint oil-water mix.
If rubbed on your body, peppermint oil can also help tender muscles. With sore muscles as a thing of the past, you can get back to your workout sooner by shortening your recovery time.
2. Lemon oil
Lemon oil can help boost your immune system because of its antiseptic, astringent and detoxifying properties. By keeping your immune system strong, lemon oil will keep you healthy and in good spirits for your morning workout.
Because lemon oil has strong levels of acidity, it can aid in digestion by forming carbonates and bicarbonates of potassium, according to this study in the Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine. Lemon oil can also accelerate the white corpuscles production along with counteracting acidity and ulcers through citric acid, also assisting with digestion.
Not only does lemon oil smell fantastic but it serves as a natural fat burner. Try drinking a lukewarm glass of water with a few drops of lemon oil when you first wake up. The lukewarm water will fire up your metabolism and kill feelings of early morning nausea, versus drinking a glass of cold water with lemon oil, which can be harsh on your stomach first thing in the morning. Lemon oil and water is effective in providing mood elevating properties along with controlling nausea and vomiting.
3. Coconut oil
Coconut oil is the all-star of oils. It’s used for just about everything. From moisturizing hair and skin to keeping teeth bright and shiny, coconut oil is fantastically versatile. So it comes as no surprise that coconut oil can also help you burn fat if ingested in the morning! Coconut oil is high in medium chain triglycerides and fatty acids, which are quickly used by the body for a boost in metabolism.
Fat-burning morning smoothie
Blend coconut oil with fruits for a flavorful morning smoothie full of antioxidants. If you’d like, you can add some veggies, like vitamin-K enriched spinach, for an extra dose of energy that will put your cup of coffee to shame.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon raw virgin coconut oil
- 1 cup strawberries
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 5 ice cubes
Instructions
- Blend ingredients until smooth. Enjoy!
Oils have many healthy benefits that can aid in quick fat loss. Next time you’re ready to get your day started, try using these oils in your morning routine to amplify your weight loss efforts.
What other fat-blasting oils do you use in the morning? Leave your answers in the comments below!
— Laura Jazmin Tolliver