Written By Sam Henselijn
What are the Benefits of Nuts and Dried Fruit When Getting Fit. Personal fitness is becoming a more predominant focus in our everyday lives. Individuals not only want to feel healthy, they want to look good. For many, this means fitness classes, going to the gym, and increasing their overall activity level throughout the day.
Unfortunately, this increase in activity alone doesn’t lead to results, and many people feel defeated and quit. Where many individuals go wrong in improving their overall fitness is with their diets. We know that nuts are a very important part of any diet regimen because they are a great source of energy and needed nutrients for a healthy body and mind.
But we will discuss more of these reasons shortly. First, we need to understand why it is essential to fuel your body.
The Benefits of nuts and dried fruit when getting fit
Working out without fueling your body correctly with a healthy snack mix can lead to lackluster results. A combination of diet and exercise is key for those looking for the best results. Many people mistake a proper diet for intensive meal prepping.
However, results can be seen with simple tweaks, like increasing the number of nuts and dried fruits we eat. Both are easy to carry and are packed with essential nutrients, healthy fats, and enough calories to keep us satiated.
This article will delve deeper into the benefits of these products at different stages of the workout process.
Pre-Workout:
When working out, one may ask why some days seem better. Some days, we can lift the heaviest of weights, run for long periods without getting fatigued, and do more reps, yet on other days, it seems impossible to get through a workout.
This is no accident and comes back to how much energy the body has to burn and fuel the workout. Dried fruits and nuts are an excellent source of energy. Nuts such as almonds, cashews, pecans, and brazil nuts contain high amounts of healthy omega-3 and omega-6 unsaturated fats and are low on carbs. When we consume carbs, they are immediately converted into glucose through the body’s metabolic pathways, and any excess glucose is stored as glycogen (which we often see as body fat).
To reduce the amount of body fat while keeping energy reserves high, we can substitute our carb intake with fats. Fats contain nine calories per gram, whereas carbs contain four. Therefore, more energy is available, and less is converted to glycogen. Excess unsaturated fats are generally excreted rather than stored and can be used to lower cholesterol, which makes them an ideal alternative to grain products.
Furthermore, nuts are one of the highest plant-based protein sources. Those exercising in the morning after waking up must restore their protein reserves or suffer the fate of depleting muscles or not recovering from a previous day’s exercise.
During Workout:
In theory, a large pre-workout meal should be enough to get us through our workouts, but eating a lot before working out can make many of us feel bloated and cause cramping. To overcome this, individuals can consume food as they work.
Small workout snacks like nuts and dried fruits are easy to carry around a gym and can easily be consumed between sets and reps. During our workouts, our bodies are burning up energy reserves faster than they can be refilled. This means that almost anything we eat will be exclusively be used as energy and not stored as fat. Dried fruits are an excellent source of natural sugars and will be burned immediately as energy when working out.
A recent study showed that dried fruits, especially dried berries, create an anti-inflammatory response during oxidative stress. As we workout at the gym, our muscle fibers are broken down, causing them to become inflamed and sore. Many people stop their sets when this soreness kicks in, which prevents them from working out to their maximum potential.
By eating nuts and dried fruits, inflammation is slowed and increases workload as nuts provide the body with the immediate protein reserves required to start rebuilding and strengthening muscles. Studies have shown that protein should be consumed during or no less than 45 minutes after a workout.
Post Workout:
When an individual completes their workout, the muscle groups they worked on are generally ripped apart. When this occurs, the body recovers to make larger, stronger, and more toned muscles.
Muscle growth and shaping are impossible without protein, as proteins provide the primary necessary function to rebuild and grow. If we do not provide the muscles with protein, muscle rebuilding becomes limited, significantly reducing results. Dried fruits and especially nuts are jam-packed with proteins.
According to the USDA, 28 grams of almonds provide the body with about 7 grams of protein, comparable to one extra-large egg without high cholesterol levels. To undergo muscle synthesis, the body needs vitamins and minerals to begin the metabolic pathway. Dried fruits contain an abundance of these vitamins and minerals, most specifically Vitamin A. One study showed that Vitamin A is a co-factor in protein synthesis and that limiting Vitamin A consumption in test cases showed limited muscle growth.
The bones our muscles cover must be strong enough to scaffold the added mass. Bone strength is often linked to the amounts of calcium consumed. The average adult needs roughly 1000mg of calcium a day. Nuts such as almonds contain 75mg of calcium in a single 30g serving, providing roughly 1/10 of the daily requirement.
Getting results at the gym requires pre-workout, mid-workout, and post-workout nutrition that caters to energy replenishment and protein growth. Dried fruits and nuts are becoming a staple for active lifestyles. Those looking to add healthier snacks to their diets should check out L’Orenta Nuts.
We offer an assortment of nuts and dried fruit blends. The products sold are enjoyable on their own and can be used in various recipes. Place an order today. Customer satisfaction is 100% guaranteed.
Sam Henselijn Author’s Biography – Meet L’Orenta Nuts CEO
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