The Importance of Good Nutrition
Remember the food pyramid? As children we are taught what a balanced diet is and why it is important. However, it can be one of the things many of us take for granted. Eating well is one of the most important things we can do to improve our overall health and make it easier to make the most of exercise.
One of the key things to do is to drink more water! Drinking enough water even when not exercising is a key component of keeping your body in proper working order. Other important tips are eating more often, but in smaller portions. You should be eating breakfast, lunch and dinner with two healthy snacks in between. Your portions should be kept small, think not much bigger than your fist. This may seem crazy but you will become used to it and by eating roughly 5 times a day you will keep your metabolism working.
Replacing your carbohydrate foods with whole grain or whole wheat foods instead of white breads and pizza are a great. These are good carbohydrates that digest easier and contain more nutrients and their processed alternatives. You should also stay away from hydrogenated fat, high fructose corn syrup, sodium and sugar. None of them are good for you and will make it more difficult to stay healthy.
Eating more fruits, vegetables and lean proteins such as chicken or turkey are also important aspects of eating better. Fruits and vegetables provide many important vitamins and minerals that help your body function at its best. Some of these are Vitamin C which helps your body’s cells grow and stay healthy. Vitamin A helps your vision and protects against infection and Potassium is a mineral that helps control the fluid and mineral balance in and out of cells as well as normalizing blood pressure.
Lean proteins such as chicken and turkey are a great low-fat way of getting the protein your body needs. Proteins are broken down into amino acids that your body uses to build and repair the various parts of your body. This directly relates to working out because exercise builds muscles by breaking them down so your body can rebuild them and make them better than before. Reminds one of the saying “What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.”
Eating healthier also means eating higher quality foods. Organic foods use less or no chemicals in their production and are better for the environment. And these foods often contain higher concentrations of the nutrients you want. Processed foods such as candy and soda often contain little to no nutritional value and serve as little more than obstacles to leading a better, healthier and happier life.
Eating well and exercising at Foothill Athletic Club. Key ingredients in becoming a better you!
You can leave a response, trackback from your own site, or follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
