Tag: performance

Shaking it up- Are meal replacement shakes a healthy option for us?

Delina
meal replacement

Meal replacement shakes come at a high price and promise great results so are they worth the price we pay? In today’s article we’ll delve into the ingredients added to meal replacement shakes that may be doing your body more harm than good.Meal replacement shakes are usually processed products that people drink in place of eating one of their main meals. Dieters, the elderly, busy people on the go with little time to cook or those with digestive complaints are most likely to use meal replacement shakes. In the short…

Sugar…Hidden in Plain Sight

Delina
sugar

Did you know that 74% of packaged foods, both sweet and savoury, have added sugar?Even if you are not a sweet tooth you may be consuming more sugar than you realise. Some foods promoted as “natural” or “healthy” are laden with added sugars, compounding the confusion for consumers.Eating too much sugar is really bad for your health. A high sugar intake has been linked to an increased risk of many diseases, including obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer.Pre-packaged foods and drinks that are higher in sugar than you…

Coffee: Are you a Caffeind?

Delina
coffee

Are you a Caffeind?Here are 8 health benefits of coffee that are backed by science.1. Coffee is the biggest source of antioxidants in the western diet. Caffeine is not the only compound that makes up coffee. The antioxidants in coffee protect us from oxidation. Oxidation is thought to be one of the main mechanisms around aging and common diseases like cancer and heart disease. For people eating the standard western diet coffee may actually be one of the healthiest aspects of their eating habits.2. Coffee can improve energy levels and…

Go Bananas

Delina
bananas

You’ll never look at a banana the same way again after discovering the many health benefits and reasons to add them to your diet. Bananas may assist in the following: combat depression, make you smarter, cure hangovers, relieve morning sickness, protect against kidney cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, and blindness. They can cure the itch of a mosquito bite and put a great shine on your shoes. Here are 25 reasons to eat bananas you might have never considered before.25 ways to use and eat bananasBananas help overcome depression due to high…

Testosterone and Endurance

Delina
testosterone

 What can lower testosterone and what we can do about it naturally? Low Testosterone as a result of endurance trainingLow levels of testosterone can lead to poor muscle mass development, increased body fat stores, compromised athletic performance, reproductive issues and low libido.Endurance exercise can contribute to lowered levels of testosterone in men and can affect other important hormones in women. Many of us are avid exercisers that love endurance training so what can we do to ensure that our testosterone and other hormone levels are optimised?Exercise stress on androgen hormonesStudies consistently…

Metabolism and Nutrition – Part 2

Delina
metabolism

In last week’s blog we looked at the science behind metabolism. This week we’ll look at how we can boost our metabolism in our daily diet.Metabolism Boosting Ideas for our Daily DietThe following are some ideas of how you can incorporate the sirtuin activating foods and niacin rich foods into your daily diet: • Use olive oil in salad dressings. • Have a jar of olives handy to snack on and add olives to salads or cooked dishes. Tapenade makes a good topping for oat cakes or rye bread. • Swap…

Metabolism and Nutrition

Delina

Nutrition and MetabolismWhat do you think of when you hear the word “metabolism”?Weight loss, energy, getting older? The term is used in many contexts…but what does it really mean? One authoritative definition of metabolism is the following:“The whole range of biochemical processes that occur within a living organism. Metabolism consists of anabolism (the build-up of substances) and catabolism (the break-down of substances). The term metabolism is commonly used to refer specifically to the break-down of food and its transformation into energy.”So what does that mean? It means metabolism is the body’s process…

Dietary Supplements and Ergogenic Aids

Delina

A minefield for athletesSports supplementation is an ever growing industry and as athletes we are enticed by very clever marketing strategies and testimonials.  Internationally athletes using sports supplementation is estimated to be as high as 89% with the majority of consumers being elite athletes and older athletes. Unfortunately the manufacturing and marketing of supplements is not regulated leaving athletes vulnerable to false advertising and misleading claims.Almost every athlete wants the extra edge to improve performance and are motivated to use supplementation to enhance performance and recovery, increase energy, prevent illness and…

Nutrition for Peak Performance

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Nutrition for athletes

Athletes are often so keen to see results that they will go to all lengths in their attempts to succeed. However sometimes this can result in inflexible training regimes and strict dietary plans which may lead to being miserable and possibly not functioning optimally leading to poor performance. A flexible, open minded, science-backed approach is the best way to see nutritional and performance- based success. While nutrition by itself is important, it may have the greatest performance impact by allowing athletes to train consistently. Proper nutrition during the recovery period…