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Hydration - Quick Tips

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Did you know that on average, Americans drink a little more than four glasses a day!! By not hydrating yourself adequately you can affect your workout, your weight — even your brainpower. Here are just a few quick tips to help you hydrate!

1. Make drinking water a daily habit

2. Feeling thirsty or experiencing dry mouth, flushed skin, fatigue, or head-ache can all be signs of dehydration. Hydrate the body with some water before reaching for panadol

3. Plain water too boring, try adding fresh lemon or lime juice or a handful of berries.

4. To increase your fluid intake, enjoy a few pieces of fruit a day, as well as some
homemade vegetable soup. For example 1 cup cooked sliced zucchini  contains 6 oz of water!!

5. If you find you get to the end of day without finishing your water bottle set a timer as a reminder to drink a glass of water every hour or so!

And remember you don't need to guzzle a gallon of H2O during your exercise session, simply drink to satisfy your thirst and you'll take in what you need.

Let's Talk About: PINEAPPLES

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* Pineapple boosts immunity and improves blood circulations.

* Can help treat arthritis! Pineapple contains a relatively rare enzyme called bromelain that helps with the complex breakdown of proteins and has major anti-inflammatory effects! Hence helping to  reduce inflammation of joints and muscles

* Aids with digestion - being rich in dietary fibre, pineapple is like a helping hand to which keep you regular and your intestines healthy.

* Helps heal wounds and protect against infection.

* Reduces risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease

Why not add pineapple to your next smoothie or with yogurt to add a extra tang!

Carbs, Protein and Fats = ESSENTIAL

Life is all about Balance!

Let’s talk about Protein, carbs and Fats!

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Protein is essential for the growth of muscle, hair, skin and bones. Whilst carbs provide your body with energy to fuel your brain and muscles. Fat is also incredibly important for insulation, brain health and the production of hormones. When protein, carbohydrates and fats work together they keep your body healthy and functioning. The carbs you eat give you energy while the protein builds muscles. Fats and proteins are essential in order to stabilize the blood sugar levels in your body and are best eaten together! To put it simply without carbs your body would not have the energy  it needs to workout and train  hard and without protein and fats you would not be able to build muscle or grow skin and hair and regulate your hormones and mood as effectvely. Demonstrating that these elements are equally essential for your diet!

This doesn’t mean you can go out and order a crispy chicken burger to ensure you include this essential relationship is in your diet. Instead you need to choose with care and be smart about it! The best protein choices are lean meats, eggs and tofu. The best carbs are whole grains, fruits and vegetables which offer more health benefits that refined grains! The best fats are monounsaturated olive oil and avocado as well as almond butter!!! Coconut oil has been shown to have a myriad of other health benefits also.

Some examples of nutritious protein and carb combinations that you can include in your daily diet include brown rice and broccoli with legumes, tofu or grilled chicken, grilled salmon with steamed asparagus and quinoa, low-fat cottage cheese with fruit or oatmeal and nuts! These food combos will take longer for your body to absorb therefore there will be a slower release into your body and a steadier energy source to keep you going!

Source: Muscle & Fit

Source: Muscle & Fit

 

Lets talk about FIBER..

As people are becoming more and more fixated on finding the perfect diet to help with lose fat or gain muscle people are overlooking the hire component of fat lose, FIBER!

Fiber, often referred to as roughage or bulk, is a component indigestible part of the plant based foods that pushes through our digestive system, absorbing water along the way and easing bowel movements.

There are three different types of fibre which all have different functions and health benefits.

 

 Soluble fiber helps to slow the emptying process in our stomachs, which helps us feel fuller for longer! Foods rich in this type of fiber include oatmeal, nuts, beans, apples, and blueberries

 

 

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Insoluble fiber absorbs water to help soften the contents of our bowels and supports regular bowel movements. This is found in the seeds and skins of fruit (so always eat your peels) as well as whole-wheat bread and brown rice.

 

 

 

 Resistant starch is not digested in the small intestine and instead proceeds to the largeintestine where it assists the production of good bacteria and improves bowel health! Foods rich in this type include bananas, potatoes and cashews.

 

 

 

 Fiber is hugely important for gut health and the absorption of nutrients, therefore aiding digestion as it bulks up food in the digestive tract which makes your feel fuller for longer!

The minimum fibre intake should be no less that 20g for females and 25g for males but no more the 40g for females and 50-60g for males. But with most things too much of anything can be bad for you! If you fibre intake is too high is can reflect badly on you gut health and nutrient absorption. You need to focus on finding that SWEET SPOT!

 

Here are my TOP TIPS FIBRE TIPS!

1.     Eat Breakfast. Breakfast is a great place to start adding fibre.

2.     Add seeds. All kinds of seeds are high in fibre so aim to add 2 tablespoons of seeds into your diet each day!

3.     Eat more beans!! Lentils and beans are very high in fibre, especially soluble fibre. Try to have beans at least 3 or 4 times a week.

4.     Add Vegetables. As a good rule of thumb, salad or vegetables should make up 1/3 of your lunch and 1/3 of your dinner. Short on time? Frozen veggies are just as good!

5.     Eat Fruit. A piece of fruits will give you over 2g of fiber!! So aim to have 2-3 pieces of fruit everyday! Try slicing banana for brekky, adding apple to your salad and enjoying an orange a snack.

6.     Snack on nuts and dried fruit. Snacks like mixed nuts and raisins are high in fiber and make a great alternative to crisp and sugary snacks! All you need is a handful to help boost your intake

7.     Drink water.

** Remember it is normal to feel some bloating and to pass a little more wind when you first start to add in more fibre. This will settle down in a week or two.