If you are thinking of starting a running diet there are a few foodstuffs you should include to get the most out of your run. Improving your nutrition can do wonders for your physical performance! When you are starting your running diet, you want to get a feel for which foods suit you best. Getting the right amount of energy out of your diet and eating foods that will benefit your training is the key.
Here are five foods that can improve your running experience
1. Dark chocolate
And you thought running could not be more fun! Dieticians have found that dark chocolate improves blood flow and increases the effectiveness of oxygen delivery to your muscles. Add about 50g of dark chocolate daily for the best effects
2. Beetroot
If adding dark chocolate to your running diet will unbalance your carefully allocated calories, beetroot juice has a similar effect. As with dark chocolate, beetroot increases the availability of nitric oxide. It is the nitric oxide that increases blood flow.
3. Sweet and bitter flavours
Runners who rinse their mouths with a sweet, high-carb drink before swallowing activate parts of the brain that will help them to run harder. If you want to cut calories out of your running diet, switching sweet drinks for calorie-free bitter drinks works just as well.
4. Protein post-run
You do not need to add a lot of protein to your running diet to effectively re-build muscles. A meal with 25 to 30 grams of protein after your run is a great way to improve your nutrition. Foods with the amino acid leucine are best: fish, eggs, milk, and meat.
5. Cherries
Antioxidants are the name of the game when you are talking about the nutritional value of cherries. While they taste delicious, they also improve the health of your blood vessels and prevent injury. Cherries improve your running, and post-run, experience because cherry juice prevents soreness and strength loss in your muscles.
Sorting out the nutritional efficacy of your running diet has so many benefits. Remember what you put in is what you get out.