I recently got an email asking if I have a background on physical fitness as sometimes our column deal on fitness matters. No, I don’t but because I have some medical issues that needs to be managed, there is a need for me to be careful. I just want to share with you some useful informatiion from the world wide web which I had followed, often with the stern, dili strict, supervision of my wife Denise. I now tip the scales at 150 pounds from a high of 212 and I intend to stick to that, give or take a few pounds. So here’s a follow up to our FITT topic a few weeks back.
Health and nutrition experts say that if we don’t have enough food on our tummies before we go with our exercises, we get easily tired and fewer calories will be burned. I suppose we had this kind of feeling at some point when we do our fitness routines with lesser gas in our tanks.
It was suggested that we take in some healthy carbs at least an hour before we hit the gym or go for some outdoor exercises. Here are some foods recommended which they say are good fuels for our fitness programs.
Most of us are not used to eating whole grain cereals but a bowl of this with low fat milk can give us energy to complete our sets. Wheat toasts and bagels will also do, but it is advised to skip the butter and cream cheese which normally goes with bagels because of the saturated fats that takes longer to digest. I used to get my bagels at Kate’s, Ayala.Sometimes, we don’t have enough time for meals so fruits, especially bananas and apples, which are packed with carbohydrates and nutrients, gives us energy to fuel our workouts. Eat a banana 10 minutes before starting workouts.
If we’re doing regular exercise, we need more protiens compared to people stuck on their sofas. Protiens are used by our bodies to produce blood cells and repair muscles, among others. Lean meats like chicken (without the skin) and fish are best. Eggs are also good sources of protien as well as beans and nuts. Soy products like tofu and soya milk likewise are good protien sources.
It is better to snack on fruits and vegetables because of its fiber content that helps us to feel fuller without the added calories. Greek yogurt or low fat yogurt is kind of expensive but if we can splurge once in a while, it goes well with fruits. If possible, avoid the fruit and vegetable juices as the fiber content are lost in processing and we are mostly ingesting sugar. The same goes with fruit flavored yogurts.
Two slices of wheat bread with about two teaspoons of peanut butter is an energy booster. This is a simple but ideal protien and carb combo. But if revisiting childhood memories is not our thing, two boiled eggs and a slice of wheat bread will do the trick.
Lastly, hydration is important. Depending on the intensity, water usually will do. Small sips of water in between breaks will suffice if our workouts are less than an hour. For more intense workouts in excess of 60 minutes, sports drinks are advised for hydration and good performance. Just be careful on the sugars and calories in sports drinks especially if we’re trying to shed extra pounds.
Yeap, I’m not knowledgeable in health and fitness but discipline (insert your loving and caring spouse here) and common sense made the changes I never thought would be possible. If I can do it, of course you can do it.