Designing your diet to match your fitness routine
Whether you’re trying to lose weight or gain muscle, the amount of food you eat need will depend on the level of exercise you do. If you eat more calories than you burn, you’ll gain weight. But if you eat fewer calories and burn more calories, you’ll lose weight. It’s all about weighing up your options to see the number on the scales change.
Firstly, pick your intention. You’re ready for a new fitness regime or to start meal planning? It all comes down to fuelling your body to deal with what you’re asking it to do. Then incorporating a few sweet treats along the way for good measure.
Walking
General fitness comes down to eating a well-balanced diet. Regular exercise from walking or yoga, means you’ll be burning fewer calories than someone hitting the gym. So, it’s important to be eating good foods daily. Eat complex carbohydrates to help you feel full for longer and prevent you from overeating. You’re also going to want to make sure your blood sugar levels are stable so you don’t feel lethargic, tired and light-headed. Strict exercise isn’t for everyone, so diet is a good way to manage your weight. Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and beans all digest slowly and can balance your body to help you feel healthy and stronger without extreme exercise.
Running
Partaking in cardio and high intensity workouts mean you’ll be burning a lot more calories. Which means you’ll need to be eating more to make-up for the nutrients electrolytes lost in sweat and drinking more water to prevent dehydration. Get off to a good start and eat breakfast. Athletes and healthy minded individuals don’t skip breakfast. Starting your day with a healthy meal replenishes your blood sugar, powers up your muscles and prepares the brain for the day ahead. Take the head start, eat a fibre-protein-rich breaky. It will trigger healthier eating patterns for the day, and you’ll likely feel more endurance when it comes to running those few extra kilometres.
Strength Training
Weightlifting and building muscle are all about fuelling your training. If you’re not eating enough food to fuel your program, you simply won’t seeresults. To build muscle and gain size, you need to eat more calories than you burn. It’s no secret that protein is the powerhouse of results. The food you eat on a daily basis will be responsible for fuelling your workout and recovery after a session. Aim to eat a lean source of protein with each meal and pair it with a slower digesting carbohydrate and a healthy fat. Make sure to eat a meal or high protein snack before/after a workout to help your body refuel.
Sweet and sour
A sweet tooth is a win-lose situation. You’ll get a small dopamine hit from indulging in a delicious chocolate muffin, but it will leave a sour taste on your weight loss journey. However, don’t let enjoying foods get you down. It’s not a step backwards to a eat chocolate muffin on your lunch break, satisfying some cravings in your diet is important. Neglecting these delights and restricting them often leads to binge eating or overindulgence. It can sometimes also have a negative effect on mental health if we are denying ourselves what we want. Just practice being mindful and ask yourself do I need this piece of food (am I hungry?) or do I just want it?