If you exercise a lot you also have to be careful what you put in your mouth. Regardless of what exercises you are doing you have to eat good healthy foods that will help you and your body achieve peak performance. Here are some tips to help you eat the best workout food:
The best tip I can give you when it comes to working out and eating isn’t related to what you eat but when you eat and when you should exercise. That way you will be able to keep up with any type of training, regardless if how intense it is. You have to create a meal schedule that fits perfectly with your workout schedule. You should never exercise on an empty stomach because you will feel weakened. If you exercise on a full stomach you are going to upset your stomach and maybe even get indigestion.
Ideally you would give your body all the energy it needs during a workout by eating a light snack before working out. You can eat dried fruits, a banana or some yogurt. In fact any fresh fruits and nuts will do. That way you will have all the necessary energy to exercise without feeling stuffed.
Once the workout is done you have to give your body all the nutrients it needs to repair itself. After a workout your body needs carbs and proteins. The proteins will be used to build your muscles, increasing your muscle mass. It is very important to have a protein rich nutrition while working out if you want to build your muscles. You need to eat carbs because while exercising you have burned all the resources of glycogen found in your muscles and liver.
You should eat some healthy workout foods 30 minutes after you have finished the workout. You can eat some dried fruits or fresh fruits and drink one glass of milk. That way you will get all the carbs and a lot of proteins. So you don’t overdo it with the carbs, and eat more than you are supposed to you should know that you have to eat about 1 gram of carbs for each 2 pounds you weigh.
If you work out a lot you should eat during your daily meals foods that contain starch like rice, potatoes, bread, pastas. That way you give your body more carbs and energy. If you opt to eat more flour products, you should eat only the whole grain kind. They contain lots of fibers which will make you eat less while still feeling full. Dietary fibers are great if you are trying to lose some weight.
An active life, filled with physical activities, requires lots of proteins. The more you workout the more proteins you need to eat daily. You should eat lean meat, eggs and low fat dairies daily to give your body as many proteins as it needs. Chicken breast is a fabulous source of proteins and it contains no fats. What more can you ask for?
While you exercise you also have to drink plenty of water. While you workout you lose a lot of water through perspiration. You need to replenish your body’s water resources during and after a workout. If your body gets dehydrates it won’t be able to reap all the benefits from working out. If you don’t want to work out in vain make sure you drink plenty of water.
There is a simple way to find out how much water you should drink after a workout. Weigh yourself before the workout and after the workout. For each pound lost you have to drink 4 to 6 cups of water. Besides this water, you also have to drink the daily recommended 10 cups of water.
On the market there are also found all kind of food supplements and drinks that are presented as workout foods. Some of them are good but you have to be careful. If you choose to use them, make sure you read the prospectus and find out the effect on your body of each and every ingredient found in them. You should also get the advice of someone that has used them for a long time and is very healthy and fit.
By working out you also increase the production of free radicals by your body. That is why you have to eat food rich in antioxidants. Preventing the damage that free radicals can make in your body is essential if you want to stay healthy. All fruits and fresh vegetables are full of antioxidants, especially vitamin C. If you eat more fruits and vegetables you will get healthier for sure and they are a terrific workout food.
If you want to reap the best result from working out you have to eat good healthy workout food. For more information you should also read:
– Healthy Workout Food for Maximum Results
– What to eat before a workout: a flexible food menu
– What to eat after a workout: top 10 recommended aliments
October 8, 2009
Exercise & Fitness