Tuesday 15 October 2013

Green Juice!


Picture taken from www.healthycosmos.com
I've been drinking green juice daily for almost 6 months now. If a day passes where I don't get a chance to make one I feel my body craving it, it's weird!
At the moment I'm eating strictly vegan and will do for the remaining 13 days leading up to the Dublin City Marathon. What does it mean to be Vegan? Well it's probably better reffered to as being plant based. So all the foods I am consuming do not contain any animal products, animal flesh or animal waste. I am choosing to do this from a purely performance stand point, the performance benefits I will explain in another post. Since I'll be eating wholey plant based food it is inevitable that I will be juicing every day and sometimes twice a day so I thought it would be a good idea to share the resources I use.

Anytime I mention a green smoothie or juice around family and friends, I get quizzed! Most people snub their nose at the thought of the texture or taste but believe me, if it is done right these things are delicious. And of super value to an athlete!

So here are a few of my go to resources when deciding what to juice.

One of my favourite web sites is www.mindbodygreen.com and on that site I came across this story. I found it quite inspiring, although I don't share any of the background story with this guy. The inspiration came from the power of the food.

There are lots and lots of articles on the mindbodygreen site about juicing but this one I found most helpful and really easy.

My wife bought me this really cool book 'The Green Smoothie Bible' just after I started. She waited about a month for me to give up or for the fad to wear off. Once I cracked the month and she realised I hadn't gone mad she gave me this as a gift one day. It is a good purchase because it will tell you what to juice and when depending on the seasons and what fruits are available.

My go to site for all things nutrition is nutritionfacts.org if you have a question you can bet there is a small video answering that question. But better than that, you can also bet that the video is evidence based not some hoodo voodo. Here is one of my favourite videos on juices and smoothies.

I'll end this post by stating the 3 things I put in every juice or smoothie I make.

1. Spinach or kale. I'm not mad on the texture of the kale juices so I usually go with spinach. Why? I've worked in the health and fitness industry for 15 years and have learned that if a clint or patient begins a question with "what foods can I eat to ensure I'm getting enough...........", the answer is always Green leafy veg! It dosen't mater if the question ends with, vitamin A, B, or C, iron, magnesium or selenium, fiber, energy or goodness, the answer is never wrong if the answer is green leafy veg. Vitamin B12 is the only exception.

2. Amla powder. Why? Our bodies are pounded every day by free radical damage. Antioxidants prevent free radical damage. Scientist are warning us that just about everything may be a risk factor in cancer growth. Well the truth is, many cancer growths come from free radical damage not being off set by antioxidants. Get your Amla powder and rest easy that you are doing a lot better than most people.

3. A squeezed fresh lime. I exercise a lot, most days I do something. Citrus fruits are shown here by Dr. Michael Greger of nutritionfacts.org to reduce muscle fatigue and damage. Muscle damage is what makes you slow down.

I hope all this stuff helps!

Run fast, run far but most importantly RunSensible

Neil

No comments:

Post a Comment