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10 Best Fitness Foods
- by Harry "Hank" Johnson Jr. - President, The Health and Fitness Channel, Inc.
Regular exercise is only part of the formula for a better body and health. Eating balanced meals featuring a variety of nutrient-rich foods is another essential component. I would venture to say it is the most important component if achieving your best shape is your goal.
While no single perfect food exists, many foods stand out as nutritional powerhouses. The list of 10 below are some of the ones I feel are at the top of the list. By including as many of them as possible in your daily diet not only will you look better, but you'll also improve your health and performance.
1. Lean Beef
There are many people who, upon embarking a diet, try and limit their consumption of red meat. Although there are cuts of red meat you should stay away from if losing fat is a priority, there are also very lean and healthy cuts of beef available. Some are even leaner than chicken.
Plus lean beef is a great source of iron, zinc, and high quality protein. Just make sure you choose the leanest cuts and trim away any excess fat you see on it. The best cuts of lean beef are flank, eye of round, top sirloin, top round, and even the ground beef available today that is 96% fat free.
3 ounces of roasted, lean eye of round steak = 153 calories, 5.4 grams of fat (of which only 2 grams is saturated), 0 grams of carbohydrate, 24.5 grams of protein, 59 mg cholesterol, 53 mg sodium, 333 mg potassium, 15% of the USRDA for iron, 31% of the USRDA for zinc, plus many other important minerals in significant quantities such as niacin, vitamin B-6, folic acid, vitamin B-12, phosphorous, magnesium,
and copper.
2. Fish/Fish Oils
Fresh fish and fish oils are rich in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which research suggests provides protection against heart disease. Eating fish rich in omega-3's (salmon is amongst the richest source) may be enough to reap their heart-protective benefits.
The other great thing about the fats found in fish is they help one to actually lose more fat. The fat found in fish has been found to be a potent fat decoupler. They help to "release" the fatty acids found in your fat cells and allow them to be put into circulation in your bloodstream.
Since your body needs fuel to exercise these fat cells can then be more easily used since they are immediately available. For this reason fish is perfect for dieters. I recommend eating fish 2-5 times per week as well as supplementing with fish oil capsules every day. I've found they truly do help in your fat loss efforts – plus they're also good for you.
3. Collard Greens
What was the first impression that came into your mind when I said collard greens? Was it an appetizing one?
Typically a traditional southern food usually eaten boiled with added ham hocks or other meat, most people are unaware of collard greens impressive fat loss potential when eaten raw.
One of the keys to losing fat is in curbing your appetite. One of the best ways to do that is to eat foods high in fiber. Fiber slows the digestive process down and creates a feeling of fullness. These two in concert go a long way towards keeping the "munchies" at bay.
I've found that collard greens has one of the highest fiber content to total carbohydrate content of just about any other food around. Here's what I mean, 2 cups of raw, chopped collard greens are only 24 calories. There are only 4 grams of carbohydrates in those 2 cups and of those 4 (and here is the key part), a full 2.5 grams are pure fiber. This means over 60% of the carbohydrates found in collard greens are fiber. No other food can come this close.
Here's what this means to you with regard to fat loss. Fiber goes mostly unprocessed through your digestive system. This means it adds little to no "real" calories to your body, especially since your body has to work (and expend energy) in order to process it.
Now, when you eat a food that has a lot of `bulk', or fiber, but little calories associated with it, you will become much less hungry. And If you don't get hunger pangs you are less likely to sabotage your diet. Most people bust their diets because they eat too many processed foods with little to no calories. What happens is they get larger blood sugar swings which results in hunger pangs. After a few weeks of eating the wrong types of diet foods a person begins to feel as if they're deprived. This is the mortal enemy of the dieter.
And once you put yourself into a deprived state then it's only a matter of time before you can't take it any more and binge. By eating high fiber foods you help keep those very powerful hunger pangs at bay and will be less likely to bust your diet.
And although raw collard greens may not sound appealing to you here's what might help. Start to think of raw collard greens as any other salad vegetable. Instead of using romaine lettuce for your salad use raw, chopped collard greens instead. They actually have a very mild taste and go well with other salad vegetables like finely chopped red cabbage, kale, cucumbers, sweet green and red peppers, tomatoes, etc.
I've actually created a special salad I call "The Ultimate Meal". This salad has a very high fiber to carbohydrate and calorie count, tastes good, and will go a long way towards reducing any extra `baggage' you happen to be carrying around. It's available in my Ultimate Results Program and includes some of the salad ingredients I mention above in
specific ratios to help you achieve your fat loss goals.
Also, if you'll recall in my list of high-calcium foods in the first part of this month's newsletter, it showed collard greens as being one of the highest calcium containing foods available. Since you also read how a high calcium intake also helps you lose fat, this is yet another reason to ensure collard greens become one of your top 10 foods too.
Bottom line – if you're not eating collard greens on a regular basis then you're missing out on its very powerful health and fat loss benefits.
4. Broccoli
One of the best nutrition bets around. Not only is it a vegetable of the cruciferous family (which may help fend off cancer), but it's a good source of vitamin C (190% of the USRDA), vitamin A (25% of the USRDA and mainly in the form of non-toxic beta carotene), and an excellent source of soluble fiber, important (as I mentioned already) for keeping blood sugar levels steady and helping you lose fat.
Broccoli also has certain compounds in it that help men bind excess estrogen in their system. And too much estrogen in your system will make it much harder for you to get leaner.
Broccoli is also one of the better sources of folic acid (31% USRDA) and a good source of calcium (21% USRDA) and magnesium.
5. Blueberries
In numerous studies blueberries have been shown to be one of the highest antioxidant-containing foods in existence. Not only high in the traditional antioxidants, it also contains rare and very powerful forms of antioxidants not typically found.
And as I've written before, a high antioxidant intake is essential not only for health, but also for improving your results in the gym. Antioxidants such as vitamin C help reduce the muscle-destroying effects of high cortisol in your body (which is typically raised following an intense exercise session).
I personally love using them in my protein shakes. I buy bags of frozen, unsweetened blueberries and store them in my freezer. Then, when I'm ready to have a protein shake I throw ½ cup of blueberries into a blender along with my protein mix, then top it off with a couple of teaspoons of healthy essential fats. Delicious, nutritious, and results producing.
6. Papaya
An untapped treasure of nutrients. One-half of this exotic fruit provides almost as much potassium as a banana and more than 100% of USRDA for vitamin C. It's also a good source of the cancer-fighting beta-carotene. Plus, papaya is also low in calories for its bulk and size. ½ papaya = only 58 calories, 15 grams of carbohydrates, and plenty of fiber (½ papaya has over 12% of your daily recommended allowance).
Papaya is also an excellent source of natural digestive enzymes. And giving your digestive system a little help with your 5-6 meals a day eating pattern is a smart thing to do. Folic acid is another strong point for papaya as it contains 15% of the USRDA for ½ of a papaya.
7. Kiwi
The strange little fruit in the fuzzy brown wrapper imported from New Zealand proves that good things come in small packages. Each sweet and tangy kiwi fruit provides 100% of the USRDA for vitamin C and 12% of your daily fiber requirement. For a powerful antioxidant punch, kiwi fruit is right up there at the top of the list
8. Essential Fats
In last month's newsletter I talked in detail not only about the benefits of essential fats, but also of the necessity to make sure it is a regular part of your diet.
The best sources of this "can't live without" nutrient are fish and plant sources (such as flax seed). Also, another great way to get it is to supplement with carefully pressed oils. The FLORA COMPANY makes the best ones; they invented the extraction process of getting oil from the seeds without using heat (heat destroys the beneficial effects of essential fats).
Finally, don't be scared of the word fat. This type of fat actually helps you lose fat. Salud!
9. Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese has long been known as the "dieter's friend". And it deserves its reputation as the one food a dieter should never be without. It is one of the most bioavailable sources of protein available. There are few better protein sources for building muscle and helping you lose fat.
And it's in the "helping you lose fat" department where it shines. You see, almost all dairy foods contain a very powerful substance called CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid). Numerous studies have revealed the powerful fat-inducing and muscle building effects of this compound.
However, with the push for lower fat foods over the past couple of decades, including low-fat dairy, the amount of CLA we get today pales in comparison to what we used to receive. You see, CLA is found in high concentrations in the fat of dairy products. And with the push to lower our overall fat intake we inadvertently are also lowering our CLA intake as well.
This is not insignificant as the studies on CLA have shown it is a very powerful fat loss stimulator. Animals and human subjects supplementing with CLA have shown over a 60%+ decrease in body fat.
This is one of the reasons I recommend full-fat, not low-fat, cottage cheese. The fat in the cottage cheese contains high amounts of the CLA that will help you lose body fat and gain lean muscle (another beneficial effect the studies discovered).
If your overall diet is derived from mostly natural foods that contain little fat then eating full-fat cottage cheese will still place you far below the amounts typically eaten by most people. Plus, the fat it does contain promotes fat loss.
Finally, the protein found in cottage cheese contains 2 important muscle-building properties.
First, it contains high amounts of Glutamine, which is the most abundant amino acid in your body. It is extremely important to make sure you get enough glutamine in your diet because of the high demand for it by your body. If not supplied by your diet your body will pull it from other areas in your body high in glutamine. And this is practically any muscle group in your body. This can potentially compromise the lean muscle you're trying desperately hard to increase.
Finally, cottage cheese is composed of effective combinations of whey and casein protein. Whey is a fast acting protein that, when eaten, gets into your bloodstream very quickly. Casein is a much slower, timed-release type of protein. It's important to get both of these as they each have unique benefits that will help build muscle quicker and more effectively than most any other natural protein source.
10. Protein Powders
Protein powders are probably the food product most responsible for building better bodies than any other supplement in the world. And I say this with conviction. From numerous studies and real-world experience, an increased protein intake ALWAYS leads to greater muscularity and increased lean muscle mass, especially for those that were not supplementing with protein powder supplements before. The effect, in most cases, is very dramatic.
Increasing one's protein intake is a very reliable way to increase lean muscle accretion on your body. Most people don't take this serious enough. They think, "I get plenty of protein from the foods I eat."
Nothing could be further from the truth. In order to put serious amounts of lean muscle on your body you have to supplement with much more protein than the USRDA recommends (and even women want to build as much lean muscle tissue as they can – more muscle helps burn more fat).
Of course it's assumed you're also employing a serious weight-training program as well. Extra protein all by itself will do very little to build more muscle tissue. You have to create the demand in the weight room in order to use the extra protein to rebuild your muscles. Even if you've been taking in 1 gram of protein for every pound of bodyweight in the past, once you up your protein intake into the neighborhood of 1-½ to 2 grams of protein you should see immediate results.
Your muscles will feel fuller and harder, and you should also feel leaner. A higher protein intake (as long as carbohydrates are kept in check) almost always leads to increased muscularity and reduced body fat.
- by Harry "Hank" Johnson Jr. - President, The Health and Fitness Channel, Inc.
Regular exercise is only part of the formula for a better body and health. Eating balanced meals featuring a variety of nutrient-rich foods is another essential component. I would venture to say it is the most important component if achieving your best shape is your goal.
While no single perfect food exists, many foods stand out as nutritional powerhouses. The list of 10 below are some of the ones I feel are at the top of the list. By including as many of them as possible in your daily diet not only will you look better, but you'll also improve your health and performance.
1. Lean Beef
There are many people who, upon embarking a diet, try and limit their consumption of red meat. Although there are cuts of red meat you should stay away from if losing fat is a priority, there are also very lean and healthy cuts of beef available. Some are even leaner than chicken.
Plus lean beef is a great source of iron, zinc, and high quality protein. Just make sure you choose the leanest cuts and trim away any excess fat you see on it. The best cuts of lean beef are flank, eye of round, top sirloin, top round, and even the ground beef available today that is 96% fat free.
3 ounces of roasted, lean eye of round steak = 153 calories, 5.4 grams of fat (of which only 2 grams is saturated), 0 grams of carbohydrate, 24.5 grams of protein, 59 mg cholesterol, 53 mg sodium, 333 mg potassium, 15% of the USRDA for iron, 31% of the USRDA for zinc, plus many other important minerals in significant quantities such as niacin, vitamin B-6, folic acid, vitamin B-12, phosphorous, magnesium,
and copper.
2. Fish/Fish Oils
Fresh fish and fish oils are rich in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which research suggests provides protection against heart disease. Eating fish rich in omega-3's (salmon is amongst the richest source) may be enough to reap their heart-protective benefits.
The other great thing about the fats found in fish is they help one to actually lose more fat. The fat found in fish has been found to be a potent fat decoupler. They help to "release" the fatty acids found in your fat cells and allow them to be put into circulation in your bloodstream.
Since your body needs fuel to exercise these fat cells can then be more easily used since they are immediately available. For this reason fish is perfect for dieters. I recommend eating fish 2-5 times per week as well as supplementing with fish oil capsules every day. I've found they truly do help in your fat loss efforts – plus they're also good for you.
3. Collard Greens
What was the first impression that came into your mind when I said collard greens? Was it an appetizing one?
Typically a traditional southern food usually eaten boiled with added ham hocks or other meat, most people are unaware of collard greens impressive fat loss potential when eaten raw.
One of the keys to losing fat is in curbing your appetite. One of the best ways to do that is to eat foods high in fiber. Fiber slows the digestive process down and creates a feeling of fullness. These two in concert go a long way towards keeping the "munchies" at bay.
I've found that collard greens has one of the highest fiber content to total carbohydrate content of just about any other food around. Here's what I mean, 2 cups of raw, chopped collard greens are only 24 calories. There are only 4 grams of carbohydrates in those 2 cups and of those 4 (and here is the key part), a full 2.5 grams are pure fiber. This means over 60% of the carbohydrates found in collard greens are fiber. No other food can come this close.
Here's what this means to you with regard to fat loss. Fiber goes mostly unprocessed through your digestive system. This means it adds little to no "real" calories to your body, especially since your body has to work (and expend energy) in order to process it.
Now, when you eat a food that has a lot of `bulk', or fiber, but little calories associated with it, you will become much less hungry. And If you don't get hunger pangs you are less likely to sabotage your diet. Most people bust their diets because they eat too many processed foods with little to no calories. What happens is they get larger blood sugar swings which results in hunger pangs. After a few weeks of eating the wrong types of diet foods a person begins to feel as if they're deprived. This is the mortal enemy of the dieter.
And once you put yourself into a deprived state then it's only a matter of time before you can't take it any more and binge. By eating high fiber foods you help keep those very powerful hunger pangs at bay and will be less likely to bust your diet.
And although raw collard greens may not sound appealing to you here's what might help. Start to think of raw collard greens as any other salad vegetable. Instead of using romaine lettuce for your salad use raw, chopped collard greens instead. They actually have a very mild taste and go well with other salad vegetables like finely chopped red cabbage, kale, cucumbers, sweet green and red peppers, tomatoes, etc.
I've actually created a special salad I call "The Ultimate Meal". This salad has a very high fiber to carbohydrate and calorie count, tastes good, and will go a long way towards reducing any extra `baggage' you happen to be carrying around. It's available in my Ultimate Results Program and includes some of the salad ingredients I mention above in
specific ratios to help you achieve your fat loss goals.
Also, if you'll recall in my list of high-calcium foods in the first part of this month's newsletter, it showed collard greens as being one of the highest calcium containing foods available. Since you also read how a high calcium intake also helps you lose fat, this is yet another reason to ensure collard greens become one of your top 10 foods too.
Bottom line – if you're not eating collard greens on a regular basis then you're missing out on its very powerful health and fat loss benefits.
4. Broccoli
One of the best nutrition bets around. Not only is it a vegetable of the cruciferous family (which may help fend off cancer), but it's a good source of vitamin C (190% of the USRDA), vitamin A (25% of the USRDA and mainly in the form of non-toxic beta carotene), and an excellent source of soluble fiber, important (as I mentioned already) for keeping blood sugar levels steady and helping you lose fat.
Broccoli also has certain compounds in it that help men bind excess estrogen in their system. And too much estrogen in your system will make it much harder for you to get leaner.
Broccoli is also one of the better sources of folic acid (31% USRDA) and a good source of calcium (21% USRDA) and magnesium.
5. Blueberries
In numerous studies blueberries have been shown to be one of the highest antioxidant-containing foods in existence. Not only high in the traditional antioxidants, it also contains rare and very powerful forms of antioxidants not typically found.
And as I've written before, a high antioxidant intake is essential not only for health, but also for improving your results in the gym. Antioxidants such as vitamin C help reduce the muscle-destroying effects of high cortisol in your body (which is typically raised following an intense exercise session).
I personally love using them in my protein shakes. I buy bags of frozen, unsweetened blueberries and store them in my freezer. Then, when I'm ready to have a protein shake I throw ½ cup of blueberries into a blender along with my protein mix, then top it off with a couple of teaspoons of healthy essential fats. Delicious, nutritious, and results producing.
6. Papaya
An untapped treasure of nutrients. One-half of this exotic fruit provides almost as much potassium as a banana and more than 100% of USRDA for vitamin C. It's also a good source of the cancer-fighting beta-carotene. Plus, papaya is also low in calories for its bulk and size. ½ papaya = only 58 calories, 15 grams of carbohydrates, and plenty of fiber (½ papaya has over 12% of your daily recommended allowance).
Papaya is also an excellent source of natural digestive enzymes. And giving your digestive system a little help with your 5-6 meals a day eating pattern is a smart thing to do. Folic acid is another strong point for papaya as it contains 15% of the USRDA for ½ of a papaya.
7. Kiwi
The strange little fruit in the fuzzy brown wrapper imported from New Zealand proves that good things come in small packages. Each sweet and tangy kiwi fruit provides 100% of the USRDA for vitamin C and 12% of your daily fiber requirement. For a powerful antioxidant punch, kiwi fruit is right up there at the top of the list
8. Essential Fats
In last month's newsletter I talked in detail not only about the benefits of essential fats, but also of the necessity to make sure it is a regular part of your diet.
The best sources of this "can't live without" nutrient are fish and plant sources (such as flax seed). Also, another great way to get it is to supplement with carefully pressed oils. The FLORA COMPANY makes the best ones; they invented the extraction process of getting oil from the seeds without using heat (heat destroys the beneficial effects of essential fats).
Finally, don't be scared of the word fat. This type of fat actually helps you lose fat. Salud!
9. Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese has long been known as the "dieter's friend". And it deserves its reputation as the one food a dieter should never be without. It is one of the most bioavailable sources of protein available. There are few better protein sources for building muscle and helping you lose fat.
And it's in the "helping you lose fat" department where it shines. You see, almost all dairy foods contain a very powerful substance called CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid). Numerous studies have revealed the powerful fat-inducing and muscle building effects of this compound.
However, with the push for lower fat foods over the past couple of decades, including low-fat dairy, the amount of CLA we get today pales in comparison to what we used to receive. You see, CLA is found in high concentrations in the fat of dairy products. And with the push to lower our overall fat intake we inadvertently are also lowering our CLA intake as well.
This is not insignificant as the studies on CLA have shown it is a very powerful fat loss stimulator. Animals and human subjects supplementing with CLA have shown over a 60%+ decrease in body fat.
This is one of the reasons I recommend full-fat, not low-fat, cottage cheese. The fat in the cottage cheese contains high amounts of the CLA that will help you lose body fat and gain lean muscle (another beneficial effect the studies discovered).
If your overall diet is derived from mostly natural foods that contain little fat then eating full-fat cottage cheese will still place you far below the amounts typically eaten by most people. Plus, the fat it does contain promotes fat loss.
Finally, the protein found in cottage cheese contains 2 important muscle-building properties.
First, it contains high amounts of Glutamine, which is the most abundant amino acid in your body. It is extremely important to make sure you get enough glutamine in your diet because of the high demand for it by your body. If not supplied by your diet your body will pull it from other areas in your body high in glutamine. And this is practically any muscle group in your body. This can potentially compromise the lean muscle you're trying desperately hard to increase.
Finally, cottage cheese is composed of effective combinations of whey and casein protein. Whey is a fast acting protein that, when eaten, gets into your bloodstream very quickly. Casein is a much slower, timed-release type of protein. It's important to get both of these as they each have unique benefits that will help build muscle quicker and more effectively than most any other natural protein source.
10. Protein Powders
Protein powders are probably the food product most responsible for building better bodies than any other supplement in the world. And I say this with conviction. From numerous studies and real-world experience, an increased protein intake ALWAYS leads to greater muscularity and increased lean muscle mass, especially for those that were not supplementing with protein powder supplements before. The effect, in most cases, is very dramatic.
Increasing one's protein intake is a very reliable way to increase lean muscle accretion on your body. Most people don't take this serious enough. They think, "I get plenty of protein from the foods I eat."
Nothing could be further from the truth. In order to put serious amounts of lean muscle on your body you have to supplement with much more protein than the USRDA recommends (and even women want to build as much lean muscle tissue as they can – more muscle helps burn more fat).
Of course it's assumed you're also employing a serious weight-training program as well. Extra protein all by itself will do very little to build more muscle tissue. You have to create the demand in the weight room in order to use the extra protein to rebuild your muscles. Even if you've been taking in 1 gram of protein for every pound of bodyweight in the past, once you up your protein intake into the neighborhood of 1-½ to 2 grams of protein you should see immediate results.
Your muscles will feel fuller and harder, and you should also feel leaner. A higher protein intake (as long as carbohydrates are kept in check) almost always leads to increased muscularity and reduced body fat.
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