Are you getting the nutrients you need for exercise?

Are you getting the nutrients you need for exercise?
Exercise significantly increases your body’s demand for nutrients, especially:

• protein
• vitamin C
• B vitamins
• sodium
• water

You need to increase protein to help build and repair muscle, B vitamins to burn fat more efficiently, and vitamin C to minimize tissue damage and remove toxic free radicals that result from oxidative stress. Water and sodium losses through sweat must be replaced. If you aren’t getting enough of these nutrients, you could compromise the health benefits of exercise.

Your genetics can also influence your exercise performance: variants of the ACE gene can lead to greater endurance while variants of the ACTN3 gene can lead to more power. Though you can’t control your genes, you can make sure you are eating the right foods to get the nutrients you need.

Most fruits and vegetables, including broccoli, pineapple, oranges and sweet peppers, are rich in vitamin C. B vitamins include thiamin, folate, riboflavin, B6 and B12; top food sources of these vitamins can be found here. Protein-rich foods include chicken, fish, tofu and low fat dairy products.