7 staple foods to add to your fitness-focused diet
You know that when it comes to improving your fitness, what you put into your body is just as important as how you perform in the gym. Food is fuel, and if you want to optimize your strength, speed, and endurance, your food choices are important.
Ready to upgrade your fitness-focused meal plan? Here are seven recommendations (and easy meal suggestions) to add to your weekly meal plan.
Manuka honey
"After exercise, Manuka honey can be part of the repair process to replenish depleted liver and muscle glycogen stores," says Leslie Bonci, MPH, RDN, CSSD, LDN sports nutritionist at Kansas City Chiefs. Offering a variety of non-GMO, certified, and UMF certified options, Comvita Manuka honey is a great choice.
Honey can also be beneficial pre-workout, says Bonci, who calls it a quick source of energy with minimal bulk to avoid digestive upset. "Fructose, which is the main sugar in honey, helps stimulate rapid absorption of fluids, carbohydrates, and electrolytes in the small intestine and also helps increase oxidation of carbohydrates consumed during exercise, so it's a good option for athletes," he mentioned. she says. Bonci suggests pairing Manuka honey with peanut butter in a wrap or adding it to yogurt with a banana. If you can't live without your post-workout shake, she adds a swirl of Manuka honey. Upton also suggests dripping it on breakfast options like oatmeal. Or you can make your honey bars and snacks to take with you on long training runs or outings.
Plantain
There are many good reasons to love bananas. For starters, they are delicious and quite cheap. The fruit is a powerhouse of potassium, which helps nerve and muscle function. Bananas are also a great source of easily digestible carbohydrates that can fuel your workout without added sugar. Research by the Human Performance Laboratory at Appalachian State University found that for male cyclists, consuming half a banana every 15 minutes during a time trial was just as effective as swallowing it. a high-carbohydrate sports drink during the same period.
Eggs
Small update: During exercise, it creates micro-tears in the muscles, which are repaired during recovery to make them stronger. According to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, consuming protein combined with nutrients from whole food sources can also help muscle growth. The study found that men who did exactly that within five minutes of a leg workout, through three whole eggs (protein and fat) compared to those who only ate egg whites (protein and no fat), experienced increased muscle repair. protein muscle fibers and recovery. This is important since this process is essential for getting bigger and stronger, said study author Nicholas A. Burd, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist at the University of Illinois. in Urbana-Champaign, in Men's Health. Upton notes that eggs contain all nine essential muscle-building amino acids, along with 13 other essential nutrients, and are one of the few sources of choline, a muscle-building nutrient.
Do you want to reap the fruits of the body? After exercise, have an egg salad sandwich or scrambled eggs and potatoes, she says. These provide the perfect combination of carbohydrates and protein for faster recovery.
prunes
You might think of prunes which, when eaten, can have a laxative effect, but they have more to do with it. According to a review of studies, eating prunes can not only improve bone strength, but it can also counteract the onset of bone density loss. And a recent study from San Diego State University's School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences also found that eating prunes daily has a protective effect on men's bones.
However, bone health is not the only benefit. Plums are also a good source of carbohydrates, are nonperishable, and don't take up a lot of space in your intestine during exercise, says Bonci. She also notes that they work as a pre-workout snack, as well as a recharge during long-term activities. Her
Chickpea
It can be tempting to skip a pre-workout meal, but with an easy option like roasted chickpeas, you won't want to. According to Bonci, the legume is a great protein supplement before a pumping session and works great in a homemade concoction alongside mini pretzels, dried fruit and nuts. "Pre-exercise protein helps prevent muscle loss during exercise and may also help promote satiety and stabilize blood sugar," says Bonci.
Chickpeas are also high in vitamin B, which is also good for a boost before hitting the gym.
Mango
If you're still experiencing delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) after hard days at work or long runs, adding more anti-inflammatory foods like mangoes can help your recovery, Upton says. In fact, a cup of sweet tropical fruit also contains 100% of the daily recommended vitamin C, as well as 35% of the recommended vitamin A, two nutrients essential for immune defense. A recent study published in the journal Molecular Nutrition & Food Research confirms this, reporting that adults who ate mangoes daily had higher levels of gallic acid and gallotanins in their bodies, which also have antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-aging properties. -obesity.
Did we mention that the fruit also improves blood sugar regulation? One study found that people who ate mango had lower blood sugar after 12 weeks than when they started.
Upton suggests pairing mango salsa with meat, seafood, or poultry to increase iron absorption, which helps carry oxygen to your muscles. He also likes to mix it with oatmeal and make ginger-mango-chia pudding. (Speaking of a mighty breakfast.)
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