Food

I’ve always been interested in nutrition and I’ve always been aware of the importance of eating the right foods. You know it must be important to me because I have an entire page devoted on this blog to food. But I have never done my diet right. There has always been a major flaw in it ever since I got serious about endurance sports back when I began rowing. This year I will attempt to nail it once and for all by eating some of these foods I’m about to list off. Obviously these aren’t the only things I eat, but these are some of the staples of my new diet, which attempts to maximize the highest micro-nutrient rich foods. Feel free to make a comment and add to the list if you think a particular vegetable or food is deserving recognition. You must give a reason why it’s so important though.

POWA FOODS.

GRAINS:

Quinoa. It has the highest amount of amino acids of any grain. Plus it’s very low on the glycemic index, contains no gluten, and is lower than wheat in polyunsaturated fat, which causes extra inflammation.

Beans. High protein, cheap, lots of B vitamins, low glycemic.

Brown rice.  Combined with beans, it completes the amino acid profile your body needs. 

Oats.  They’re a bit higher on the glycemic index than quinoa, making them better for energy directly before a workout.  Plus they’re cheaper and it’s important to get a good mix grains.  Plus horses eat them.

Dave’s Killer bread or other multigrain breads.  Higher in amino acids and fiber than typical wheat bread.  

MEAT/PROTEIN:

Beef or other red meat.  For the amino acids, iron, and B vitamins.

Chicken.  Amino acids.

Salmon.  Probably the best source of protein you can find.  High in omega-3, magnesium, B vitamins, Vitamin D, promotes testosterone levels to increase.

Sardines.  Omega 3, low in mercury–as opposed to tuna because they’re lower in the food chain.

Eggs.  High in vitamins A, E, D, B 12 and B 2, selenium, omega-3, beta carotene, magnesium, and promotes testosterone.  Don’t worry about the cholesterol in eggs (maybe), because it hasn’t been proven that our bodies absorb the cholesterol in eggs or that eggs actually increase cholesterol at all.  But I am slightly skeptical because this propaganda (true or false) was most likely spread by the big egg corporations.  But just in case, eggs grown by chickens raised on pastures are much healthier than pen-raised chickens (just like wild salmon is better than farm raised salmon and grass-fed beef is better than corn-fed).

Yogurt.  High in probiotics, which help with digestion and the immune system.

I tend to stay away from most dairy, other than yogurt, because of the high amounts of saturated fat and lactose.  I don’t eat soy products either, because of the high doses of polyunsaturated fat and the increases it makes in estrogen production.  Almond milk is a good substitute for soy or dairy milk, and so is rice milk.  Although almond milk is expensive and rice milk is high on the glycemic index.  It’s good for a recovery drink, though.

Whey.  All the essential amino acids and extremely high bio-availability.

VEGETABLES:

This is where my diet has always been lacking.  And this is probably the food group where you can make the biggest difference in your performance, assuming you’re already eating plenty of grains and meat–which is much easier to do.  Vegetables have the highest source of micro-nutrients out of any of the food groups, and therefore probably deserve the most attention.  

Avocados.  Monounsaturated fat, which helps reduce inflammation.  Vitamin E.

Mushrooms.  Not an actual vegetable or even plant, but they’re high in Vitamin D and inhibit the production of estrogen while raising testosterone production.

Bell Peppers.  Vitamins C, A, B-6, other antioxidants.

Onions.  The main reason I like them is because of their high supply of quercetin, a powerful antioxidant.

Tomatoes.  Lycopene and Vitamin C and A.

Kale.  Extremely high in Vitamin K, A, and C.  Plus it has manganese and just about every other vitamin for that matter.  

Spinach.  Like kale it’s a super food when it comes to K, A, C, manganese.  Plus it has magnesium, folate and everything else also.  It is high in iron, but our bodies aren’t able to use iron from plan sources, so don’t eat it spinach for iron reasons–it actually inhibits the digestion of iron because of oxalic acid.  Swiss chard, mustard greens, and collard greens are all in the same category as spinach and kale.

Olives.  Monounsaturated fat.

Garlic.  Immune system, testosterone production.

These are the main vegetables I eat.  Some of the best that are easy to get.  But all vegetables have something good in them, even iceberg lettuce. 

FRUIT:

Like vegetables, all fruits are good.  Some are better than others, though, and these are the ones that are amazing plus aren’t super expensive.  I think with fruit, it doesn’t really matter that much which ones you choose, as long as you eat a lot of them.

Bananas.  Good recovery food because of their high glycemic level, plus they promote testosterone.  

Apples.  Quercetin, Vitamin C, low glycemic so they’re good for snacking on.

Grapes.  Quercetin, high glycemic.

Oranges.  Vitamin C, polyphenols, and other antioxidants.

These are the only ones I ever eat on a regular basis, but like I said before, all fruit is good.

OILS:

I think eating the correct fats may be one of the keys to immune health and athletic performance.

Coconut oil or coconut milk.  Yes it is high in saturated fat, but it’s all good for you.  A negative campaign funded by US farmers of canola oil and soy beans destroyed coconut oil’s reputation back in the 1980’s.  But coconut oil’s saturated fat is different than animal saturated fat, and is probably one of the best fats you can find.  It contains medium chain triglycerides, which are digested quickly like carbohydrates and only contain six calories per gram instead of nine.  Here is a direct quote off a possibly reputable website about some of the benefits of coconut oil.  (I don’t feel like re-writing it myself).  

“The health benefits of coconut oil include hair care, skin care, stress relief, maintaining cholesterol levels, weight loss, increased immunity, proper digestion and metabolism, relief from kidney problems, heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, HIV and cancer, dental care, and bone strength. These benefits of coconut oil can be attributed to the presence of lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid, and its properties such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial, soothing, etc.”

Olive oil.  Monounsaturated fat.

Canola oil.  Monounsaturated, plus it can be cooked at a higher temperature than olive oil without being converted to a hydrogenated oil.

Cod liver oil.  I don’t eat it for fat intake, and if I did I would die of vitamin A and D poisoning.  All you need is a tablespoon every couple days to keep your vitamin A and D at EXTREME levels.  Vitamin D, which is actually a hormone, has an important role in muscle recovery and immune health.  Plus it increases calcium production.  

Almond butter.  Almonds are amazing.  But I eat almond butter mainly so I can avoid peanut butter, which is higher in saturated fat and also contains peanut lectin, which cannot be digested in the body.  Almonds have magnesium, potassium, manganese, copper, vitamin E, selenium, and calcium.

 

Recipe for Kennett’s Energy Bread TM—a good on-the-bike food:

Mix all of the following ingredients in a bowl and pour onto a thick baking pan. Bake at 375 for 20-40 minutes depending on how much you make.

Mash 3-5 bananas in a bowl and add a tiny bit of water, then add the following:
Couple cups of unbleached flour (not whole grain because you don’t want all that fiber while you ride).
Half as many cups of brown sugar as flour (I’m going to try maltodextrin because I’m re-thinking the idea of eating so much raw cane sugar).
About a half cup of canola oil.
2 eggs.
2 Tbsp baking powder.
Consistency should be very wet. If not, add a tiny bit more water.

That’s all you need for the base. But you can add some of this stuff to make it much much better:
Cinnamon
Chocolate chips (but they melt when it’s hot out)
More bananas
Honey or agave nectar instead of brown sugar
Raisins
CHOWDA
Almond or Peanut butter
Seeds
Oats
Bob’s Red Mill 12-grain cereal mixture (very good)
Bacon bits
Dog chow
Diarrhea