Nutrition Matters - Eat Healthy to Maintain Fitness!

What nutrients does your body require?

The essential nutrients your body needs include:

• ● Carbohydrates - Whole grains like rice and wheat, quinoa, oats, barley, legumes, potatoes

• ● Proteins - Lean meats like beef, lamb, pork, poultry, fish and seafood, dairy products, lentils

• ● Fats - olive, peanut and canola oils, avocados, nuts, peanut butter

• ● Vitamins -green leafy veggies, berries, dairy, eggs, oily fish, fresh fruits

• ● Minerals - cereals, nuts, dairy, fresh fruits and veggies

• ● Fibre - fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, dried fruits

• ● Water

When it comes to nutrition and fitness, a good balance of all these macro and micronutrients helps you with:

• ● providing you energy,

• ● building and maintaining the bones, muscles, and organs,

• ● protecting the body from disease, and

• ● regulating body temperature, digestion, electrolyte balance, and excretion.

A nutrient-rich diet, along with an active lifestyle helps you avoid diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, stroke, and cancer.

Let food be your medicine

Nutrient-rich foods, also called superfoods, contain substances that improve metabolism, increase the rate at which your body burns fat, and reduce inflammation.

For example, red peppers contain capsaicin that increases your body’s capacity to burn fat. Antioxidants in green, leafy veggies decrease inflammation and protect your cells from damage by free radicals. Quercetin, an antioxidant present in berries, apples, broccoli, and onions helps reduce inflammation and improve metabolism.

Enhance your metabolism by natural means

Commercially available packaged food supplements are not the best way to improve your metabolism. Fresh, natural foods are the best supplements to help boost your body’s metabolism. Here are some foods and the compounds present in them that help increase your body’s metabolic rate:

• ● Nuts and seeds contain essential fatty acids

• ● Fatty fish contain omega-3 fatty acids

• ● Black coffee contains caffeine

• ● Apples are a good source of fibre and iron

• ● Whole grains contain iron and fibre

• ● Hot peppers contain capsaicin

• ● Yoghurt contains probiotics and calcium

• ● Green tea contains polyphenols and caffeine

• ● Cold water

What superfoods to include in your daily diet?

Nutrition and fitness go hand-in-hand. The right nutrition can help prevent and even cure diseases. Superfoods give you a large amount of nutrients with a minimum number of calories. They contain antioxidants that reduce damage by free radicals. These free radicals are by-products of energy production and they can damage your DNA and cell membranes.

Here are some superfoods to include in your daily diet:

• ● Oats - contain fibre and improve both digestion and metabolism

• ● Berries - like acai, goji, blueberries, blackberries, etc. contain flavonoids, antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins that lower the risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and even urinary tract infections.

• ● Eggs - high in proteins and vitamin B12, eggs help build muscles

• ● Soy - a great source of vegan protein and isoflavones. Helps reduce the amount of bad cholesterol in the body, reduces loss of bone density, and prevents memory loss due to ageing.

• ● Green Tea - contains antioxidants called catechins that prevent inflammation and cancer, arthritis, and even reduce stress.

• ● Leafy Greens - are rich in vitamins A, C, E, K, and B-complex. They also contain calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium, fibre and carotenoids that help reduce the risk of heart disease, obesity, mental decline, constipation, and high BP.

• ● Salmon - Omega-3 fatty acids in salmon help reduce bad cholesterol, prevent blockage of arteries, and reduce the risk of abnormal heartbeats

• ● Wheatgrass - contains enzymes that promote digestion and nutrient absorption, while reducing bloating and gas.

• ● Spirulina - contains lots of vitamins like B6, E, C, and minerals that improve your immunity, and increase the production of antibodies and white blood cells that fight off infection.

• ● Turmeric - contains curcumin that helps prevent heart disease, dementia, and cancer. It also prevents inflammation and improves symptoms of depression and arthritis.

Other superfoods include broccoli, cinnamon, flaxseed, olive, oil, yoghurt, garlic, beetroot, Brazil nuts, barley, and blue-green algae.