You’ve read about foods that offer more than just the energy you need to get
through a training session; some foods even have protective health benefits.
Foods with phytochemicals are high on the list of foods that offer health
benefits. Are they likely to enhance your performance? Probably not, but they
could help you stay healthy and may lower your risk of disease — and that helps
your performance in life.
PhytochemicalsPhytochemicals,
pronounced "fight-o-chemicals,” occur naturally in plant foods. They are
nonnutritive plant chemicals that contain protective, disease-preventing
compounds. You can find phytochemicals in all sorts of plant foods, from garlic
to berries and everything in between. These “extra” food components found in
your fruits and vegetables offer antioxidant benefits, as well as other
disease-protecting qualities that make them essential to your diet. Research has
consistently shown that diets high in fruits and vegetables help reduce the risk
of cancer, heart disease, and other chronic ailments that affect so many people.
Not only do fruits and veggies offer phytochemicals, such as antioxidants, they
also provide vitamins, minerals, and fibre. And their great taste, high
nutrition, easy portability, and refreshing qualities make them perfect for the
active individual.
Tips to increase your phytochemical intake from fruits
and vegetables:
- Add them to your grocery list and make them part of your routine
- Keep whole fruit in your work area
- Have canned fruit as a snack
- Start every meal with a piece of fresh fruit
- Make it easy on yourself: Buy vegetables and fruit pre-cut, or do it
yourself and store them in containers in your fridge for an easy-to-grab snack
- See how many fruits and vegetables you can sneak into a meal. Sit down for a
chicken breast and challenge yourself to see how many veggies you can enjoy with
it
- Add them to all your recipes; for example, soups demand vegetables, so add
all sorts
- Top your pizza with vegetables
- Add green peppers, tomatoes, onions, and spinach to a bagel with cheese
- Start the day with a veggie omelet with asparagus, onions, tomatoes,
spinach, and feta
- Stuff anything: Mix brown rice with your favorite veggies and stuff them
into a green pepper, cabbage roll, or a tomato
- Create an easy vegetable pot pie
- Grill vegetables for a barbecueToss a hefty salad
- Add tomatoes, zucchini, and peas to macaroni and cheese
- Puree a red pepper and carrot soup
- Have a frozen fruit smoothie any time of day
- Add frozen berries and peaches to frozen yogurt
- Add mangoes or pineapple to your pizza
- Slice apples or add cranberries to your chicken salad
- Add sliced fruit to cereal
- Add frozen berries and peaches to yogurt for a yogurt parfait
- Add pineapples to a stir-fry
- Top a spinach salad with fresh fruit
Disclaimer:
The scientific information found on the powerbar.com website is derived from the following sources unless otherwise stated:
American College of Sports Medicine, Sawka MN, Burke LM, Eichner ER, Maughan RJ, Montain SJ, Stachenfeld NS. American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Exercise and fluid replacement. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2007;39:377–390.
American College of Sports Medicine; American Dietetic Association; Dietitians of Canada. Joint Position Statement: nutrition and athletic performance. American College of Sports Medicine, American Dietetic Association, and Dietitians of Canada. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2000;32:2130–2145.
Burke L, Dean V, eds. Clinical sports nutrition. McGraw-Hill Companies, Australia, 2006; 415–453.
Currell K, Jeukendrup A. Superior endurance performance with ingestion of multiple transportable carbohydrates. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2008;40:275-281.
Jeukendrup AE, Moseley L, Mainwaring GI, Samuels S, Perry S, Mann. CH. Exogenous carbohydrate oxidation during ultraendurance exercise. J Appl Physiol 2006;100:1134-1141.
Asker Jeukendrup, Michael Gleeson: Sport Nutrition, An Introduction to Energy Production and Performance, Human Kinetics 2004
Expert Panel:
Trent Stellingwerff PhD, BSc, Senior Research Scientist – Performance Nutrition, Nestlé Research Center
Christopher D. Jensen PhD, MPH, RD Nutrition & Epidemiology Researcher
Tricia L. Griffin RD, CSSD, POWERBAR Sports Nutritionist
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