Tag Archives: Protein

Healthy Ways to Recover From Holiday Meals

The holidays are ushered in with food and tons of it. From Halloween candy, to Thanksgiving side dishes, to Christmas desserts, there are too many temptations to resist this time of year. We enjoy these once a year foods in astronomic proportions which leads to an average of several pounds of weight gain per person. Here are a few steps to help you recover from holiday overeating.

The healthiest way to get back on track after the overindulgence is to start eating frequent and healthy meals throughout the day. You are less likely to eat non-nutritious foods if your body is full. Keeping your body full with healthy fuels including high protein foods like nuts, lean meats, vegetables, and fruit in moderation will help you to achieve your goal. Again, all of this hinges on the fact that you will eat small portion sizes many times a day and fill up on healthy fuel.

Foods that include unhealthy sugars and carbohydrates as the first few ingredients in the label should be given or thrown away. Self-control starts at the grocery store. Limit food purchases to foods that are unprocessed. One simple way to gauge how healthy a food is location in the store. Foods that are located on the perimeter of the store are more healthy in general than the processed foods found down each aisle.

Drink plenty of water. Being dehydrated can produce physical reactions that mimic hunger pangs. Moreover, a very high percentage of the population remains dehydrated due in large part to choosing other beverage options. Sugar and alcohol laden drinks are not going to help you achieve your goal of recovery. Sip on water before every small meal to ensure that your body experiences fullness without any calories at all!

Get back into the routine of regular exercise. It will be preferable to find an hour or so in your day to keep your activity level up. Interval training is especially effective in burning a maximal amount of calories. Always start slow and consult your health care provider before starting an exercise program especially if you have any unique conditions. In addition to devoted exercise time, it would be good to add as much activity to your daily routine as well. Whether this is parking far away from work or the store and walking that little bit further, or cleaning your house vigorously at night, all of these add calorie burning activity that will help you achieve your goal.

Finally, find someone to hold you accountable. People in general do better sticking to a diet and exercise program when they find an honest accountability partner. There is nothing like meeting a friend at the gym as a motivation to go daily. Friends and family support systems are large determinants in a person’s success with weight loss. Find someone who will help you to achieve your goal. It can be as simple as emailing them a daily report as to what you have eaten daily or getting together for a yoga class. This makes weight loss more enjoyable and increases the chances of you sticking with it.

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The Benefits of Egg Protein

Eating only egg whites is a well known way to avoid many of the “bad” fats in eggs and is a popular method utilized by many dieters to avoid extra calories. What many people don’t know is that egg whites also contain a large amount of protein- some would even call it one of the best sources of protein around. Protein is an essential part of any well balanced diet and has many benefits to its consumers. Here are some of the main reasons that egg protein is so beneficial.

Egg Protein is High in Amino Acids

Egg protein found in egg whites is not only nutritious and fat free but it contains a high concentration of amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins, such as alanine, artrine, glycine and methane. It also contains a lot of other vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin D. It’s consumed by athletes and body builders in mass quantities due to these nutritious components. It improves a person’s ability to build muscle and recover from strenuous and taxing activities on the body by giving them the protein that one needs to recover and build lean muscle.

Egg Protein Aids in Digestion

Egg protein also enhances digestion. Since your body is being provided with nutrients that are necessary to its optimal functioning, digestion is at its peak. This makes egg whites a popular choice among dieters and health fanatics, and also is great for most people with digestive problems.

Egg Protein is Free of Cholesterol

Egg protein is not only fat free, it’s cholesterol free. For someone that wishes to lower their cholesterol intake, taking out egg yolks in their cooking and only using egg whites could be a great way to do this. Talk about guilt free yet delicious eating! When scrambled, you can barely tell the difference between egg whites and eggs that have the yolk left in.

The benefits of egg protein are too obvious not to be seen. Egg whites improve digestion, help build muscle and are a fat free, cholesterol free source of many essential vitamins and nutrients. Whether you’re looking for a healthy egg substitute, a high source of protein or a natural way to ingest amino acids and vitamins, egg protein from egg whites basically has it all. And, to top it all off, ingesting these ingredients naturally through egg whites is more beneficial to your body than taking them in pill or powder form because when those types of supplements are created, some of the most essential and useful ingredients are lost.

For a healthy and tasty meal you’ll never feel guilty about, scramble yourself some egg whites or add some to your favorite homemade fruit smoothie!

About the Author: Robert Stephonic is a personal loan coordinator by day and a part-time cook at night. He loves creating diet-friednly foods for those struggling to lose weight or build muscle – for health or competition. He also enjoys writing and is currently contributing to a registered ultrasound technician career guide.

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What to eat before and after a workout?

Many have heard the axiom “No pain, no gain”, but this should not be applied to any pain that can be prevented. It is very important to stretch and warm up before a workout and cool down after. Also, controlled breathing can ease any respiratory difficulties. These aren’t the only problems to be considered, however.

Eating, physiologically speaking, is like putting fuel in your gas tank. One pays careful attention not to introduce diesel into a gasoline engine but, strangely, many do not have the sense to do the same with their bodies. There are three basic food types: proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. While experts recommend a healthy mix of the three, many tend to indulge in carbohydrate rich foods like bread, potatoes, and cakes but neglect protein rich foods like fish, soy products, and eggs. Even body builders, who definitely know better, tend to derive much of their protein from supplements and continue to indulge in carbohydrate rich foods.

Interestingly, though carbohydrates are necessary for the health of the body, in large quantities is leads to many health related problems such as obesity and, consequently, hypertension, diabetes, and increased risk of stroke. Through a process known as gluconeogenesis the body is capable of synthesizing glucose from protein.

There is no such process for creating several amino acids contained in protein. Without these essential amino acids, namely Pyrrolysine and Selenocysteine, the body does not have what it needs to function properly.
It must be noted that muscle is composed of protein. When an individual “works out” effectively muscle fibers become damaged, protein is used to repair the muscle, and the muscle becomes stronger.

For these reasons, it is important to incorporate plenty of protein into one’s diet after a workout. Many who take part in anaerobic exercise complete their workout with a protein rich food such as peanut butter, tuna fish, eggs, etc and a great deal of water. Incorporating carbohydrates and fats are important for balance but the emphasis after a workout should be protein.

Before a workout, however, it can be a good idea to consume carbohydrates as a means of gaining almost immediate access to all the energy in the food for the workout. Simple carbohydrates such as sugar, potatoes, and white bread are good for a quick release of energy, followed by a spike in insulin levels. Complex carbohydrates are preferred, however, due to their tendency to release energy steadily over a period.

M. M. Wagner writes for her hobby blog she uses to write about Schwinn elliptical machine and home fitness tips to help people prevent heart diseases.

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