Healthy eating and physical activity go hand in hand. Once your learn the basics, you’ll find that eating healthy and staying active isn’t hard at all. Here are the top 6 healthy fitness foods you’ll buy anywhere and easily:

 

1. Blueberries to reduce inflammation

 

 

Blueberries earned their ‘superfood‘ status a few years ago, thanks to their high level of free-radical-beating antioxidants, those magical molecules that can help prevent a host of maladies. Blueberries have more antioxidants than 40 other common fruits and vegetables tested. The antioxidant plant pigments that make blueberries blue guard against heart disease, cancer and age-related blindness and memory loss.

 

Berries are often lower in calories than other fruits, too. Like dried fruit, fresh fruit is also good to eat during and after exercise since it contains high GI carbohydrate-packed sugars, which provide energy to muscles in the quickest way possible. Frozen blueberries (often far cheaper than fresh in the supermarket) are brilliant when whizzed up into a post-exercise smoothie to replenish your muscles’ glycogen (energy) stores.

 

2. Tomato to reduce health risk

 

 

Whether you’re eating a cherry tomato bruschetta or a homemade marinara sauce, you’re doing your body a favor. It doesn’t matter if you call tomatoes a fruit or vegetable (although they’re definitely fruit). At least 1 of the 3,000 species of this superfood should find its way into your diet.

 

Tomatoes are a delicious and versatile superfood loaded with antioxidants (called Lycopene) and numerous vitamins.. Lycopene has been making headlines for a few years now as a powerful nutrient to help prevent prostate cancer in men. Tomatoes may also help with a weight-loss program: the fruit has been linked with natural weight loss hormones in the body such as leptin, a type of protein which helps to regulate metabolic rate and appetite.

 

3. Broccoli to diet healthier

 

 

Some people love broccoli and some people hate it, but there’s no denying that broccoli is a nutritional wonder. Broccoli along with kale, spinach and green cabbage are some of the most nutrient-dense foods you’ll find in the supermarket. They are also a great source of fibre, which aids in digestion, prevents constipation, maintains low blood sugar, and curbs overeating.

 

Furthermore, a cup of broccoli has as much protein as a cup of rice or corn with half the calories. When it comes to bone-building calcium, plant based foods such as broccoli and kale offer a healthy dose and can be a good alternative to dairy products. Low calcium levels make you more vulnerable to stress fractures, particularly if you do endurance sports, so make sure you get enough calcium in your diet – 700mg (average) for adults a day.

 

4. Banana to be energetic :

 

 

Bananas are the perfect fitness food: compact, unfussy, soft to chew, and packed with nutrients. Each banana, on average, contains 30 g of carbohydrates, making it an effective source of energy for athletes. Bananas are a rich source of vitamin C. One banana contains about 15 percent of the vitamin C you need per day. Vitamin C is essential for strengthening muscles, tendons and ligaments, and keeping your immune system strong under the stress of exercise. Vitamin C also helps speed and promote the repair of wounds and soft tissue damage incurred by activities like rigorous exercise.

 

Eating bananas is one of easiest ways to provides athletes with the nutrients they need for working out. Bananas are fairly cheap, readily available throughout the year and mix easily into protein shakes. They also work well as a simple addition to any kind of breakfast. Eating a banana within two hours before exercise can help sustain energy levels throughout a long workout and help reduce recovery periods after a workout.

 

5. Salmon to build muscle

 

 

According to a research published on the European Journal of Nutrition, those that consumed fish oil showed improved muscle development: their bodies used twice the amount of amino acids to build new protein tissues, especially skeletal muscles. Salmon owns the most oil among fishes and everyone can find it easily in every markets.

 

If you can’t or don’t eat seafood, look for an algae-based source of omega-3s. It is also packed with vitamins A, B and D as well as calcium, iron, phosphorus and selenium. The presence of omega-3 fatty acids helps your brain work better and improve your memory. Studies have shown that they can also help in preventing type 2 diabetes.

 

6. Dark chocolate to curb exercise-induced stress

 

 

Numerous studies support the myriad benefits of dark chocolate and new research published in the European Journal of Nutrition adds exercise protection to the list. In the study, healthy men were asked to eat 3.5 ounces of 70% dark chocolate two hours before a two-and-a-half-hour bout of cycling. Compared to a control group, the chocolate eaters experienced higher blood antioxidant levels and reduced markers of exercise-induced cell stress.

 

Dark chocolate also contains several chemical compounds that have a positive effect on your mood and cognitive health. Chocolate contains phenylethylamine (PEA), the same chemical your brain creates when you feel like you’re falling in love. PEA encourages your brain to release endorphins, so eating dark chocolate will make you feel happier. So enjoy a few individually wrapped squares of dark chocolate daily, melt and drizzle it over fresh fruit, or mix it into oatmeal, smoothies, or parfaits.