What to Eat When Working Out: Fitness and Exercise Diet
Fitness and exercise diets incorporate a large variety of whole foods with natural ingredients. Many stores offer organic products, fresh fruits and veggies, and salad bars. If you are working out for an extended amount of time, you should be eating a good amount of carbohydrates (9-12 servings), protein (3-4 servings), dairy (2-3 servings), fruits and veggies (7-10 servings) per day. However, besides serving size and fat to carbohydrate ratios there are several rules to a fitness and exercise diet that will lead to a great workout and a lifetime of healthy diet.
Fitness and Exercise Diet Rules:
Moderation is the number one rule when it comes to a fitness and exercise diet. The key here is: everything in moderation. You will be able to incorporate all different types of foods into your fitness and exercise diet if you consume them in moderation.
Eat consciously and slowly. Chewing your food carefully will not only help your body work less in the digestion process, but it will also let your brain know that food is coming in and that you won't need as much.
Timing is everything. Most people eat a large meal each day and in actuality, your body can't handle all the nutrition you are putting in it at one time. If you break it down to smaller portions throughout the day, your body will be able to assimilate it better. You will build endurance while combating fatigue by supplying the right amount of glucose to your liver and bloodstream.
Do not eat before you go to bed. Anything you eat 3-4 hours before bedtime will just get stored as fat. Look forward to going to bed and waking up to a nice breakfast, which brings us to our very important #5 rule for a fitness and exercise diet.
Whatever you do, don't skip breakfast! Starving yourself or skipping meals is terrible for your body. Not only are you depriving your muscles and brain of important nutrients to keep yourself happy and whole, you are damaging your entire system by working out without energy - just imagine driving your car from Detroit to Pittsburgh with a quarter tank of gas. You will eat whatever you see during your next meal and oftentimes it won't be the best choice.
