We can’t ignore the importance of food quality for optimum health and fitness. Both fitness exercisers and athletes have special dietary needs. They have increased protein requirements to support muscle maintenance, growth, and muscle tissue recovery. Optimising carbohydrate intake and meal timing can enhance exercise performance, help replenish glycogen stores and support healing. Healthy fats facilitate the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and assist in the synthesis of hormones. Specific micronutrients – vitamins and minerals – can improve exercise performance and recovery.
It is obvious that diet is of major importance for fitness exercisers and competitive athletes alike.
In this article, we explore the best food choices to reach your fitness goals.
Animal or plant source foods for fitness?
A healthy diet is in its core plant based. This does not mean vegetarian or vegan, it only means that most foods we consume should come from plants. Regular table sugar comes from sugar canes or sugar beets, which are plants, but table sugar is not a good choice for our health.
High-quality protein, whole or less refined carbohydrates and healthy fats from natural sources rich in vitamins and minerals are the key components of any diet meant to enhance exercise performance, stimulate muscle growth, assist recovery, support weight loss and promote overall health.
For vegans, it can be a challenge to meet their protein and micronutrient needs. They have to plan their meals more carefully and combine various protein sources and foods to ensure sufficient intake of all essential amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals that are found in animal source foods.
A balanced plant-based diet is not impossible, but not a simple task either. Natural food is always the best choice, but food supplements and vitamin fortified food can be a convenient solution for vegans.
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The best protein sources
Protein is the only nutrient that can promote muscle growth and repair muscle tissue. The highest quality protein sources are animal proteins because our body can use them more efficiently.
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Meat, seafood, dairy and eggs are complete protein sources. They are high-quality proteins because they include all essential amino acids. Our bodies can’t synthesise the essential amino acids, so we have to derive them from our diet.
Now let’s see different food groups in more detail and how they can help you achieve your fitness goals.
The egg is the champion of proteins
Meat is an excellent, concentrated source of protein, rich in vitamins and minerals. It can have a high content of saturated fat, so it’s important to choose skinless and lean cuts of meat. By lean, we mean less than 10 gr of fat/100gr of raw meat. If you are not familiar with the various cuts of meat and their fat content, pre-packed meats at the supermarkets have a nutrition label which can help you make better choices. Less “marbled” cuts of meat have less fat content. Cost can be an issue, but you can take off the skin yourself and trim the visible fat as much as possible.
Seafood, another top protein source, can be rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids that are linked to prevention ofdiseases such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Studies seem to be inconclusive about the effectiveness of fish oil supplements, so it’s preferable to consume natural food rich in healthy fats rather than supplements.
We’ve already said in the introduction that dietary fat facilitates the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. Seafood also contains vitamins and minerals essential for skin and bone health.
Large quantities of wild seafood can be harmful because of methylmercury poisoning. So, moderation is key.
Dairy products are a source of fast and slow digesting proteins – whey and casein, respectively. Low fat milk and yoghurt are excellent choices for a pre-workout or a post-workout meal.
Dairy products are concentrated sources of calcium – one of the building blocks of the bones. Calcium is an essential mineral for women of any age and even more for perimenopausal and menopausal women because they are more prone to osteoporosis and bone fractures.
Plant-based calcium fortified and lactose free dairy products are substitutes for vegans and lactose intolerant individuals.
Egg protein includes all essential amino acids in the perfect ratio for bioavailability, making it the highest quality protein source. The egg yolk is high in fat and cholesterol, meaning that depending on your genetics and health status, you may need to limit your consumption of whole eggs or consume only the egg whites.
Plant source foods
Animal protein is not the only protein source, there exist plant foods with very high protein content, but they are mostly incomplete protein sources. Incomplete proteins are low-quality proteins, as they lack at least one of the essential amino acids. A balanced plant-based diet is not impossible, but it is not a simple task either. Plants are also our primary source of carbohydrates and a source of healthy fats, fibre, vitamins and minerals.
A healthy diet is predominantly plant based
Nuts and seeds are another great source of protein, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals, and fibre. They are perfect for snacking – no preparation, no cooking – or to add flavor and crunchiness to your meals. Keep in mind that most nuts are calorie dense because of their fat content. Enjoy them in moderation. Chestnuts are low in calories and fat and you can find ready to eat prepacked chestnuts at most supermarkets.
Legumes are moderate in calories, rich in protein, dietary fibre and vitamins and low in fat. Legumes are not complete protein sources, except for soybeans. They can be difficult to digest for some people – but gastrointestinal side effects can be reduced with proper cooking. They are an excellent source of protein for vegetarians and vegans. Roasted chickpeas are a perfect high protein, low-calorie snack. If you can find roasted chickpeas where you live, enjoy them!
Fruit and vegetables are a powerhouse of vitamins, minerals, fibre and flavor. Fruit can also be high in sugar, but this is where a balanced diet, the glycemic index (GI), and meal timing can be important. Foods with high GI can increase blood sugar levels rapidly, and they are digested faster. The best times to consume larger quantities of carbohydrates or foods with a high GI are after a hard workout or after many hours of fasting.
The GI is a discussion topic of its own, but it is important to say that the surge in blood sugar levels and how fast we digest food can be affected by many factors, such as the combination of foods, their fat content, processing, etc.
Grains and their products should form the largest part of our daily diet, unless we are on a special diet (a ketogenic diet, preparing for a contest, etc). Refined cereals and grains have a high glycemic index and lack the vitamins, minerals and fibre stored in their shell. For these reasons, we should prefer wholemeal cereals and grains and reserve the refined versions for the times when we want to boost energy and speed recovery. A great snack you can enjoy is popcorn. Just choose low fat, low salt popcorn, or prepare it yourself.
Oils and fats add flavor to our diet and take longer to digest. Hard fat is bad for our health – fats are solid at room temperature. Plant-based oils are the healthiest, but even among them, some rank higher. The top ranking oils for cooking are pure virgin olive oil and avocado oil.
Foods and drinks with added sugar should be avoided. Fructose is a sugar found naturally in fruit, honey and vegetables and it is the sweetest of all sugars. Pure stevia is a natural alternative to regular sugar without the calories, and research shows that it doesn’t raise blood sugar levels.
Pure honey, fruit jams, and molasses can be eaten in moderation and with the right timing in mind.
Conclusion
These are the primary food groups that any “for fitness” diet plan should include. Whether the goal is to build muscle, lose weight, or enhance exercise performance. But there is a lot more to discuss in the upcoming articles.
Let’s remember here some other basic rules of healthy eating that also apply to eating for physical fitness:
Avoid junk food
Avoid fried food
Avoid carbs before bed (if you exercise late in the evening, other rules apply)
Avoid empty calories
Avoid saturated and trans fat
Should your diet be boring, tasteless, and dry? Only if this is what you enjoy.
