By: MuscleSports.net
Vegetables give your nutrition that extra punch that gets you over the top both off season & contest prep.
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning of the word vegetable was and still is commonly used and is applied to most plants collectively that offer some form of edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, roots, and seeds. Vegetables are usually grouped according to the portion of the plant that is eaten such as leaves (lettuce), stem (celery), roots (carrot), tubers (potato), bulbs (onion) and flowers (broccoli). A fruit ( though NOT a vegetable) is the mature ovary of a plant. So a tomato is botanically a fruit but is commonly considered a vegetable.
Vegetables along with fruits contain many vitamins and minerals that are good for your overall health and well being. We know that we express the importance of protein here allot because it is the #1 nutrient of the bodybuilder but the micronutrients ou get from vegetable and fruits play a huge role in utilizing all that rpotein your consuming for muscle growth. Many of those vitamins/minerals are powerful antioxidants, and may reduce the risk of many diseases:
- Vitamin A (Beta-Carotene)
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
- Magnesium
- Zinc
- Phosphorous
- Folic Acid
Many fruits and vegetables are low in fat, salt and sugar. They are a very good source of dietary fibre, which can make you feel fuller for longer and prevent over consumption of food. As part of a well-balanced and though out eating plan for your bodybuilding having vegetables along with fruits will help you to:
- Reduce Fat Level & Maintain A Leaner Bodyweight
- Lower Your Cholesterol Levels
- Lower Resting Pulse Rate
- Lower Your Blood Pressure
- Increase Muscle Blood Volume(Flow)
Vegetables and fruits with there antioxidants and phytochemicals, or plant chemicals. These biologically active substances can help to protect you from some wicked diseases and pollutants that plague our modern world. Scientific research shows that if you regularly eat lots of fruit and vegetables, you have a lower risk of:
- Type 2 Diabetes
- Stroke
- Heart (Cardiovascular) Disease
- Cancer – Some Forms Of Cancer, Especially Bowel, Stomach And Throat Cancers Later In Life
- High Blood Pressure (Hypertension).
- Broccoli: Broccoli is high in many nutrients, including fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, and potassium. It also boasts more protein than most other vegetables. Raw broccoli contains almost 90% water, 7% carbs, 3% protein, and almost no fat. It is eaten either raw or cooked. Broccoli is a particularly rich source of vitamin C and vitamin K. Contents of its characteristic sulfur-containing glucosinolate compounds, isothiocyanates and sulforaphane, are diminished by boiling(so don't boil it) but are better preserved by steaming, microwaving or stir-frying. Sulforaphane has the ability to reduce myostatin. Myostatin reduces the body's ability to grow new muscle, by reducing myostatin levels you can grow muscle faster.
- Carrots: Carrots are rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidant compounds. As part of balanced bpdybuilding nutritional plan, they can help support immune system functions, reduce the risk of some cancers and promote faster recovery between workouts and improve digestive health. A 1 cup serving of chopped carrots, or about 12 baby carrots, provides 2g of fiber. Fiber can be beneficial for cutting weight because it helps make you feel full and increases the volume of your meal.
- Whole Green Beans: Green beans, string beans, or snap beans are a rich source of vitamins A, C, and K, and of folic acid and fiber. They have similar nutritional benefits to Snap Peas and Okra. Green beans contain a high amount of chlorophyll. This may block the carcinogenic effects of heterocyclic amines that are generated when grilling meats at a high temperature. With all the grilling and food prep bodybuilders do, adding some green beans to your diet may just be mandatory! Green beans are also a great low-starch option that will keep you full, digest easily, and improve your lean muscle mass naturally
- Sweet Potatoes: The sweet potato or sweetpotato is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable. The young shoots and leaves are sometimes eaten as greens. Sweet potatoes are a staple food in many parts of the world. They are a good source of fiber, potassium, beta-carotene, vitamins, and other essential nutrients. The sweet potato comes very close to being the perfect bodybuilding carbohydrate. It has way to many health benefits list here - we will do so in a completely separate article.
- Spinach: Spinach is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. It is of the order Caryophyllales, family Amaranthaceae, subfamily Chenopodioideae. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either fresh, or after some form of storage using preservation techniques like canning, freezing, or dehydration. To get he most out we recommend using with in 5-7 days of purchase. Keep refrigerated in the vegetable crisper. Its the one vegetable to directly linked to muscle growth and toning. As with sweet potato we will have separate article on the wonder vegetable. Oh Yeah, DON'T BOIL IT EVER! Eat ii raw chopped up with red cabbage tomatoes and cucumbers in a slaw. This is the same way we recommend eating Kale below.
- Cauliflower: Cauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species Brassica oleracea in the genus Brassica, which is in the Brassicaceae (or mustard) family. There are hundreds of historic and current commercial varieties used around the world. We are gonna stick to White Cauliflower - white cauliflower is the most common color of cauliflower, having a contrasting white head (also called "curd") surrounded by green leaves. Cauliflower is very low in calories yet very high in vitamins and minerals. In fact, cauliflower contains some of almost every vitamin and mineral that you need to survive this world! This vegetable is insane with goodness and we here do know why it has not gotten he hype it deserves. Like all the others on this list it will be getting a deeper look in its own featured article.
Extra:
- Beets: Beets, Beet Root Powder, or Beet Root Juice we have all heard the drum beat of the nutritional usage of beet for exercise and recovery. We like beets here in the raw gourd variety for their blood vessel expanding nitrates that help the blood vessels in your body relax after a workout to help your heart push more blood throughout the body after strenuous activities. Still kinda young on the supplement side but adding shredded raw beets to your coleslaw mix will definitely improve your recovery and overall heart health.
- Kale: Leafy greens are your best bet when it comes to muscle-building vegetables. Kale, just like Spinach has all proteins and nitrates them some for muscle growth. Kale has more protein per calorie than fatty cuts of beef, so you can build and repair your muscles without the risk of gaining fat. Don't go running for that Kale burger just yet. We said bad cuts of bad cuts of beef. This was one of the main reasons people jumped on Kale band wagon years back. Yeah that fissile out because Kale is a vegetable! We recommend swapping Kale & Spinach in and out of you meal plans for each other. DON'T BOIL IT EVER! Eat ii raw chopped up with red cabbage tomatoes and cucumbers in a slaw. This is the same way we recommend eating Spinach.
Conclusion - As you can see vegetables are and should be a integral part of your bodybuilding nutritional plan. You see this allot on the professional level as their eating is very balanced and generally very health oriented. We know most place a great importance on protein consumption they also balance their crabs and fats very much in line with healthy athlete standards. Unfortunately though allot of up and comers tend towards fad diets that push vegetable to the side and end up coming short on their goal. Give vegetables a valid shot inside your plan and we can almost guarantee you won't be disappointed!
Tags: Athlete Nutrition General Health Whole Foods
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