If you like to regularly exercise by going to the gym, going for a jog or doing pilates, then you’re most likely aware that the foods you eat and when you decide to eat them can affect your overall performance before and after your work out.
So to place you on the right track on getting the proper optimal nutrition, here is a list of the most beneficial nutritional foods as well as tips to help you get the maximum benefit out of your daily workout.
Eat As Regularly As Possible
It’s always tough to sit down and eat a completely healthy meal which complements your diet when you just eat two or three meals every day. When you limit yourself to just a couple meals, that can deplete the energy levels right out of you, which can lead to the loss of muscle mass as well as increasing body fat. So it’s recommended that you eat smaller portions every three or so hours as doing that will boost up your metabolism while effectively controlling your appetite.
All About Those Proteins
Lean protein in your diet is a critical element for controlling your blood sugar levels as well as your appetite while ensuring that you’re maintaining lean muscle as you begin to age.
Unfortunately, the majority of those who are active consume too little protein. To remedy this, women should be getting at least one serving of protein every 3 to 4 hours, while men should be getting at least two servings. One serving of protein equates to approximately the palm of your hand, or around 3 to 4 ounces.
Include Fruits and Vegetables With Each Meal
Similar to consuming protein every three hours, you should be eating a serving of fresh fruits and vegetables with each meal as well. The majority of people will thrive a lot better when they’re eating as much as eight to ten servings of fruits and vegetables daily.
The general rule is that you should be targeting around two to three servings with each meal or snack. One fruit or veggie serving equals a half cup of chopped, preferably fresh fruits and vegetables or one cup of green leafy vegetables.
Consumption Of Starchy Carbohydrates Directly After Exercising
Anytime during the first two or three hours directly after your physical activity, it’s important that you eat higher carbohydrate based foods such as starchy vegetables and whole grains. But it’s important that you limit this intake during the rest of the day.
You should instead be eating the required portions of protein, fruits, vegetables and nuts instead. This way, you’ll most likely lose fat while simultaneously gaining lean muscle. One serving of higher carbohydrates equates to the size of your palm. It’s recommended that women have one serving while men have two servings for maximum effect.
Mixing In Healthy Fats
Balancing the intake of healthy fats will balance out your health as well as hormonal profile.
A well balanced intake of healthy fats includes one of the following with each meal:
• Flax oil and seeds
• Fresh fish and fish oil
• Olive oil
• Walnuts or
• Canola oil
Just consuming a few grams will go a long way. Typically, just one tablespoon of any of these oils or two tablespoons of the seeds or nuts should be sufficient.
Keeping Your Beverage Selections As Simple As Possible
Pure fresh crisp water or fresh brewed tea are both excellent ways to satisfy your hydration. Since they’re both calorie-free, you won’t run the risk of overloading on high sugar calories as you would if your drank soda pop, juice or some sport drinks. Tea or water also doesn’t have the same host of chemical additives which diet or sport beverages has.
Eat As Much Whole And Unprocessed Foods As Possible
Obviously, the closer that a particular food is from its natural source, the healthier it is for you. So try to avoid the processed, frozen, prepackaged, canned or boxed foods as much as possible. Instead, consume the foods which are recently removed from it’s origin. The more “whole” and “unprocessed” as well as fresh a food source is, the better it is for you.
Keep The Healthy Food As Varied As Possible
Often when the majority of active people attempt to eat healthy, they will usually limit their food choices to be usually bland and plain. But there’s really no need for eating all this boring food. Start by developing new strategies for preparing healthy foods as well as varying your intake.
Don’t Expect Perfection Every Time
Attempting to follow a strict nutritional plan may be unreasonable. There’s really no need for that type of perfection. Instead, you should be targeting a goal of following good eating habits as often as possible, say 8 out of 10 meals should be healthy. This way, it will give you the freedom as well as options to make eating healthy a regular habit for the rest of your life.
Getting Yourself Organized
Imagine that every time you were to eat, that you had excellent healthy as well as good tasting meals prepared beforehand. That would make the healthy eating process practically foolproof. So begin by shopping regularly as well as doing weekly prep and planning, say on a Sunday, and plan a daily prep menu for the week, this will make eating healthy a lot easier.