Give Your Body Some Love
When you build more physical activity in your life, you will naturally raise your metabolism and burn more calories.
This is great, especially if you want to lose weight!
But don’t use your workout as an excuse to pig out on candy, donuts or greasy fried foods.
Give your body the love it needs to sustain your energy during the workout, and to recover when you return to rest.
The Foundation
Dr. Ray Strand recommends a balanced, low-glycemic diet comprised of the following:
- 40 – 50% good carbs primarily from fruits and vegetables
- 30% good fats (nuts, legumes, olive oil, fish, beans, flaxseed)
- 20 – 30% lean protein (chicken, turkey, fish, lean red meat)
This is what your food choices should look like, according to the Harvard School of Public Health:
Eating and Exercise
The National Institutes of Health says that the diet recommended for an athlete differs little from the diet suggested for any healthy individual. However, the amount of each food group needed will depend on the type of sport, the amount of training, and the duration of the activity. Calorie needs also vary with size, age, sex, and fitness levels of the individual.
According to the Mayo Clinic, when and what you eat can make a difference in how you feel when you exercise…whether it’s a casual workout or a serious athletic competition.
Here are their top 5 tips to help you maximize your exercise and athletic performance.
- If you exercise in the morning, eat a healthy breakfast one to two hours before your workout. You need to replenish your blood sugar from the evening’s fast, or you might feel sluggish and light-headed.
- Be careful not to eat too much right before exercise. Large meals should be eaten 3 – 4 hours before exercising. Small meals can be eaten 2 – 3 hours before, and a small snack is good one hour before your workout.
- If you haven’t eaten for a while, have a small snack (energy bar, fruit, yogurt, etc.) right before and/or during your workout.
- Eat a meal that contains both protein and carbohydrates within two hours of your workout to help your muscles recover and to replace their glycogen stores. Research shows that combining protein with carbohydrate within 30 minutes of exercise speeds recovery. If you don’t feel like eating right after a workout, try a protein shake.
- Drink up before, uring and after exercise to help prevent dehydration. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that you drink roughly 2 – 3 cups of water during the 2 – 3 hours before your workout; about 1/2 to 1 cup of water every 15 – 20 minutes during your workout; and another 2 – 3 cups after your workout for every pound of weight you lose during the workout.
Water or Sports Drink?
Many athletes believe that they need to replenish carbs and electrolytes during exercise with sports drinks. According to the Institute of Medicine, the need for carbohydrate and electrolytes replacement during exercise depends on intensity, duration, weather and individual differences in sweat rates. During normal training, you are unlikely to deplete your body’s stores of sodium, potassium and other electrolytes. However, if you find yourself exercising in extreme conditions over 3 – 5 hours (for example, running a marathon), you may want to add a complex sports drink with electrolytes to your regimen.
What about Caffeine?
Some researchers have found that drinking moderate amounts of caffeine before exercising increases performance. So go ahead and have your cup of joe, but skip those sugary energy drinks. If you want a cleaner, smarter, stronger energy drink derived from green tea and other natural antioxidants, you might want to try USANA Health Science’s Rev 3. It tastes like a refreshing iced tea with lemon, and provides a great energy boost with only 10 calories and 2 grams of sugar a serving.
How About Carbo-Loading?
According to The President’s Council on Fitness and Sports, the mix of fuel (protein, fat, carbohydrate) burned during exercise depends primarily on the intensity and duration of the exercise, one’s level of fitness, and prior nutritional status. As exercise intensity and duration increase, the use of carbohydrates for energy also increases.
Some endurance athletes believe that carbohydrate loading (eating large quantities of pasta and other carbs) will boost performance.
Both the President’s Council and the NIH support a modified carb loading regimen for endurance-type activities that last more than one hour. But this is not an excuse to consume huge plates of pasta the night before a marathon.
The new modified method of carb loading is to consume a moderate 50% carb diet for 3 days, followed by a 70% carb diet for 3 days just before the race. But it works just as well to eat a steady 50 – 60% carb diet all week. This will maximize the glycogen stores in your muscles and boost your endurance the day of the event.
If you want a traditional pasta party, the time to do it is 2 nights before the event. And even then, you should indulge in moderation. Try Jorge Cruise’s Delightful Penne Pasta for a balanced meal that is high in complex carbs and protein.
According to registered dietitican Bethany Thayer, you should check the label for the words “whole grain.” Fill up on nutrient-rich carbs such as whole-grain breads, pasta, fruits and veggies rather than refined, processed foods like white bread, cookies, and baked goods.
Healthy Snack Choices
The following low-glycemic snacks contain a combination of protein, good carbs and fats to give you sustained energy for your workout.
- A handful of fresh or dry roasted nuts with a piece of fruit
- Whole-grain crackers with natural peanut butter
- A piece of string cheese with an apple
- Dry roasted edamame
- Hummus with carrot & celery sticks
- Low-Carb trail mix (see recipe)
- Protein bars or shakes (but watch out for sugar content)
We recommend USANA Health Science’s Nutrimeal shakes and nutrition bars because they are low-glycemic and contain the ideal balance of carbs, protein and fat for sustained energy. You can get more information or order them online at http://prosperitylanellc.usana.com.
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