What kind of food that helps to grow muscle faster?!
Question: To "Feed our Muscles" let's:
Eat enough and often enough. When we eat enough calories and we eat often, we fuel our muscles not just for getting around, but for all the additional daily activities, especially if we are active in sports. When we restrict our calories too much (this goes for us dieters) over a period of time, we send a signal to our body that a famine is coming. Our body may then adjust our metabolic rate to slow down to conserve calories. Result? Most likely, less strength, less energy, and even higher body fat!
Eat carbohydrates. Yes, let's eat the dreaded carbs! When we eat enough carbohydrates, we give our muscles the fuel to work out hard. This in turn will give our body the ability to utilize all that protein we're taking in to make more muscle (when we tone we add muscle fibers too, so this is not just for bodybuilders) and repair our muscles after injury. Carbohydrates also feed our brain, so when our blood sugar levels are low from not eating enough carbs, we will impair our energy, focus, and performance. When we are in short supply of carbs, the process of turning protein into fuel for our muscles and brain is costly to our body. We impair our performance, our ability to build and repair muscle, our health and even our ability to lose weight (ever get constant sugar cravings after eating mostly protein?). Lastly, high protein diets can cause dehydration to mention just one negative side effect. This is deadly to our energy.
Drink water. Just as a reminder once again, water is stored in our muscles with glycogen, the body's storage form of carbohydrates. This is the energy source for our muscles. When we need to produce energy, the stored carbohydrates are used and water is released during the process. We need water to make and release energy. Guess what happens when we are dehydrated? We get fatigued easily. Water aids our stamina, performance and it helps to ward of those muscle cramps during intense exercise.
Choose lean sources of protein. Athletes do need extra protein, and so do those of us who work out regularly. Let's mostly choose lean meats, fish, and poultry so we don't also eat the extra fat that accompanies high fat protein sources (we don't want to gain fat weight, and increase our risk for disease, do we?).
Eat a balanced diet. This means that for those of us who eat high amounts of protein, we also need to eat enough fruits, veggies and grains from real food. And for those of us who are vegetarians, it is important to get enough protein, iron, calcium, B12, and Vitamin D. Supplements, sports bars and sports drinks are not a substitute for real food.
Eat wisely. I call this being choosy about what kind of calories we eat. If I want a tough workout, I will choose a nutrient dense food over a junk food. Of course, there is always room for a little junk. I recommend no more than 10% of our total daily calories (that's about 200 calories for most of us).
So, if we want to look good, feel energetic, and perform well, let's give our body the raw materials it needs on a regular basis by "Feeding our Muscles". Have we eaten enough carbohydrates; eaten often enough; eaten wisely and consumed enough water and fluids? If the answer is yes, we're off to a good start. Here's to our health!
Answers: To "Feed our Muscles" let's:
Eat enough and often enough. When we eat enough calories and we eat often, we fuel our muscles not just for getting around, but for all the additional daily activities, especially if we are active in sports. When we restrict our calories too much (this goes for us dieters) over a period of time, we send a signal to our body that a famine is coming. Our body may then adjust our metabolic rate to slow down to conserve calories. Result? Most likely, less strength, less energy, and even higher body fat!
Eat carbohydrates. Yes, let's eat the dreaded carbs! When we eat enough carbohydrates, we give our muscles the fuel to work out hard. This in turn will give our body the ability to utilize all that protein we're taking in to make more muscle (when we tone we add muscle fibers too, so this is not just for bodybuilders) and repair our muscles after injury. Carbohydrates also feed our brain, so when our blood sugar levels are low from not eating enough carbs, we will impair our energy, focus, and performance. When we are in short supply of carbs, the process of turning protein into fuel for our muscles and brain is costly to our body. We impair our performance, our ability to build and repair muscle, our health and even our ability to lose weight (ever get constant sugar cravings after eating mostly protein?). Lastly, high protein diets can cause dehydration to mention just one negative side effect. This is deadly to our energy.
Drink water. Just as a reminder once again, water is stored in our muscles with glycogen, the body's storage form of carbohydrates. This is the energy source for our muscles. When we need to produce energy, the stored carbohydrates are used and water is released during the process. We need water to make and release energy. Guess what happens when we are dehydrated? We get fatigued easily. Water aids our stamina, performance and it helps to ward of those muscle cramps during intense exercise.
Choose lean sources of protein. Athletes do need extra protein, and so do those of us who work out regularly. Let's mostly choose lean meats, fish, and poultry so we don't also eat the extra fat that accompanies high fat protein sources (we don't want to gain fat weight, and increase our risk for disease, do we?).
Eat a balanced diet. This means that for those of us who eat high amounts of protein, we also need to eat enough fruits, veggies and grains from real food. And for those of us who are vegetarians, it is important to get enough protein, iron, calcium, B12, and Vitamin D. Supplements, sports bars and sports drinks are not a substitute for real food.
Eat wisely. I call this being choosy about what kind of calories we eat. If I want a tough workout, I will choose a nutrient dense food over a junk food. Of course, there is always room for a little junk. I recommend no more than 10% of our total daily calories (that's about 200 calories for most of us).
So, if we want to look good, feel energetic, and perform well, let's give our body the raw materials it needs on a regular basis by "Feeding our Muscles". Have we eaten enough carbohydrates; eaten often enough; eaten wisely and consumed enough water and fluids? If the answer is yes, we're off to a good start. Here's to our health!