Energize Your Workout

Energize Your Workout

Provided by Prevention

A number of factors can conspire to make you find an excuse to not exercise. Physical hunger is the most common culprit, which is why it's suggested that fitness enthusiasts snack on mini meals every few hours rather than eat two or three large meals a day. Other factors that mainly affect your brain's energy can cause a dip in motivation as well.

Here are some food tips and strategies to keep your energy up and your exercise motivation in motion.

Snack intelligently. If you're tired, eating a small snack can perk you up. Keep these snacks high in nutrient-packed, carbohydrate-rich foods and light on calories (stay under 200). If the snack is crunchy, really hot, or really cold, it will help wake up your senses.

Make breakfast happen. Skipping breakfast can leave you feeling muddleheaded both at work and while your exercise. Going all night without food and then skipping breakfast may cause your blood sugar levels to dip, which can bring on light-headedness. Since sugar in the form of glucose is your brain's primary fuel source, your memory and other thinking powers go downhill when you're running low on energy.

Cereal, fruit, and milk or even leftover pizza - make for a great start. If you're in a hurry, grab a yogurt and a whole grain roll, or throw berries, low-fat ice cream, and milk in blender for a fruit smoothie-to-go.

Wake up with water. A splash of water in the face has always been a reliable wake-up call, but drinking water can energize and refresh you even more. Between 55 and 60 percent of your body is composed of water, most of it residing in your cells, where it allows for essential chemical reactions like the breakdown of carbohydrates for energy and brain fuel. Your brain is more than 70 percent water by weight, and if this percentage dips below a critical level, you'll feel listless, dull, and headachy.

Keep yourself energized by starting off your morning with an 8-ounce glass of plain water. Keep a bottle of water handy, drinking 1 to 2 quarts throughout the day.

Snack on raisins. Raisins (along with apples, nuts, and parsley) are a great source of the mineral boron, which plays a role in brain function, perhaps combating drowsiness. Toss a few raisins and nuts into your cereal and salads and keep some snack-size boxes or packets in your desk for afternoon grazing.

Munch on Brazil nuts and tuna. Brazil nuts and tuna are two of the best food sources of selenium, a mineral that not only serves as an antioxidant but also may boost mood, lift spirits, and contribute to feelings of clearheadedness.

But before you rush out and buy a selenium supplement, be aware that this mineral is highly toxic in large doses. Better yet, concentrate on getting selenium's energy from your diet. In addition to tuna and nuts, other good food sources include chicken, turkey, lean beef, and whole grain bread and cereals.

Lighten up at lunch. You probably know from experience that loading up at lunch can leave you feeling sleepy in the afternoon. That's because food in your digestive tract diverts blood away from other parts of your body, leaving you with that sluggish feeling. Studies show that big meals (1,000 calories or more) at midday cause more drowsiness than lunches half that size. If you feel sleepy following even a light lunch, try adding some protein the next day.

Fill up on fiber. If you have low energy and feel hungry when your meal wears off, try adding some fiber to your food. Pectin, a type of water-soluble fiber found in fruits such as apples and oranges, has been shown to help people feel full longer by delaying emptying of the stomach. When people swallowed a 5-gram dose of pectin (extracted from apples) with their meal, they felt full for up to 4 hours. An added benefit is that pectin also helps lower blood cholesterol levels.

Avoid a java jag. Drinking a cup or two of coffee improves feelings of alertness and clearheadedness. But moderate use can easily brew into a caffeine habit that may actually zap your energy and cause fatigue. If you view coffee or other caffeinated beverages as a life source without which you can't function, try phasing caffeine out a little at a time. Start by cutting one-fifth of your typical daily caffeine intake for a few weeks. You may experience fatigue or headaches for a day or two as your body goes through withdrawal. When you've adjusted to this amount, continue gradually cutting back. Once you're down to a cup or two in the morning, you can decide whether you want to eliminate caffeine altogether.