Nutrition For A Beach-Ready Body

If your training is on point but your efforts refuse to show, maybe matching your nutrition with your ambition will get the results to flow!

March Madness

The fast-paced life of juggling family and work, plus a balanced fitness program can often have you eating meals on-the-go. And since making sense of your options can lead to madness, we’ve got some tips to better feed your caloric need when your life is mobile.

Clean Cals for Energy & Recovery

If you’re looking to maximize your fitness and nutrition efforts, a wise strategy would be to rely on what’s been proven to work. First and foremost is timing – and it’s a real science. As a matter of fact, there are two times in your day when nutrition counts the most: right off the hop in the A.M. and post-workout. While your morning meal can ensure that adequate glycogen stores (the source of energy most often used for exercise) are available for optimal performance and focus to start your day, the post-exercise meal is critical to recovery and improves your ability to train consistently.

eLifestyle Beach Bod Breakfast Suggestion: Fruit Smoothie. Blend your choice of fruit, 8 oz of 2%, low fat, soy milk or water to suit your taste, and add 1 scoop of whey protein powder. You’ll get roughly 20-30 grams of protein and 20-30 grams of fast-digesting simple-sugar carbs for a quick energy boost. Consume on the spot or take to go if heading out.

Snack Attack – 3 Easy Rules

No matter your goal, snacking is an essential part of any healthy eating plan. Regular nibbling keeps blood sugar levels stable and can help prevent overeating later in the day. However, benefitting from this plan depends on one crucial variable: the kind of food you put into your mouth. It can be a caloric conundrum if you only count the calories in what you eat as the calorie count of any snack choice is just a number until you compare the make-up of those calories to another.

There are three simple rules to follow when mastering your munchies. First, chew down a light sugar-free snack of just 100 to 200 calories. Second, make sure that snack provides balanced nutrition – some carbs, protein, and healthy fats. And three, the serving size you eat depends on your activity level. By comparison, routinely downing a sugar-saturated doughnut may fill the void for the moment, but eventually the sugar crash will zap your energy and beef up your beltline.

eLifestyle snack suggestion: 6 oz of Greek yoghurt with fresh fruit. You’ll get several grams of fiber, 15-20 grams of fast-digesting simple sugar carbs to fuel your engine, plus a hefty 14 grams of protein! Have any time at home or take on the go.

In the Fast-Food Lane

Nowadays, even fast-food restaurants are in tune with a healthy lifestyle by offering salads and fruit on their menus. The produce section and deli at the grocery store offer a variety of grab and go options, and plenty of restaurants offer lots of fresh vegetables and fruit options. 

eLifestyle Fast Food Suggestions:

1. Sandwich and sub shops. They offer a variety of vegetables to add to your sandwich or eat on the side. Ask if they can use less meat or cheese and add more vegetables. Go easy on the butter, mayonnaise, and other high fat sauces.
2. Burger joints. Try one of the entrée salads that many are offering. If you go for the burger, choose a salad or fruit salad side instead of fries. Have 100% fruit juice in place of pop or coffee. And say no to “super sizing” your meal. No one needs that much food all at once.
3. Restaurants. Try one of the entrée salads that many are offering. If you go for the burger, choose a salad or fruit salad side instead of fries. Have 100% fruit juice in place of pop or coffee. And say no to “super sizing” your meal. No one needs that much food all at once. Also, watch your portion sizes. Eat until you’re comfortably full, then take the rest to go.

Bonus Tip: If part or even your entire primary goal is weight loss, do not consume fast-digesting carbs later in the evening or night unless you exercise in the evening.

Balance Your Midsection

You can boast that you can do 1000 crunches with ease, but if your technique is lagging, you shouldn’t be bragging! When it comes to re-tooling your fitness program for faster results, increasing your core strength and stability with the proper exercises for your midsection is a must. Check out the eLifestyle Plank Exercise.

Waistline Warfare

From walking to treadmill training, cardiovascular exercise is an essential part of the fat-burning equation. However, if you have trouble getting started and/or perceive cardio sessions in general to be quite boring and monotonous, think again. Varying the method along with the types of programs and intensities you use on training day will help you get the most out of your cardio workout while burning a ton more calories than you are used to. And that means winning the battle of the bulge!

Measure Your Success

It requires a greater amount of attention in the beginning but learning the options you have available to help you obtain balanced nutrition during your busy day will become second nature. Remember, the key to satisfying your health and fitness goals is that you MUST focus your nutritional intake on what you need, when and why you need it, and how you can get it. This will ensure success – even when on the go.