12 AFFORDABLE MUSCLE-BUILDING FOODS As you probably know, this is not a workout group. Its simple a group--and a FREE one at that--where you can find some tips on eating healthy on a budget, saving time, making yummy food with a handful of ingredients and the like. That said, many of us DO workout or would LIKE to workout. So this post is for the gym-rat-wanna-bes and just people who appreciate knowledge about food and fitness. One more thing, my mom and I are what you might call Almost Vegan or Plant Paleo. Weve been on a journey for while now that has found us going without certain foods and emphasizing others due to personal preference but also due to our understanding of nutritional science. If youre wondering what Im talking about here with these strange labels, dont worry about it. And also know that this group is NOT the place were going to focus on vegan eating or even grind an ax about Paleo foods. IN an attempt to reach out to the most people in the most friendly way, were playing it down the middle here in this group. We plan on doing a different kind of CLEAN EATS group each month, so at some point well probably focus an entire month on one of my favorite topics: Non-Weird Vegan Foods for People Who Dont Eat Tofurkey. Or some such catchy title. With all that said, I present you with a Dozen Top Muscle-Building Foods... 1. Canned tuna. Just dont jump overboard it every day. Mercury is an issue at some point. 2. Eggs. Yes, it DOES matter if you buy the really crap big box store brand vs. one loaded with Omega-3. Chickens that have eaten good, non-factory floor food produce eggs with bright orange yolks that are indeed more nutritious. Take care of the hens and they will take care of you. 3. Chicken breast. Lean, packed with protein. If you are going to eat chicken, though, dont get it from chicken manufacturing plants located out in the middle of nowhere. Im not naming places or shaming brands, but you get it, right? Buy non-hormone-or-saline plumped chicken and youll not only feel good about how the chicken was raised but about what your family is actually consuming when they eat their dinner. 4. Lean ground whole meats, as in beef, chicken, turkey. Again, clean meat, not body parts is the key. Humanely treated animals produce better tasting meat; the more freaked out the animal is right before slaughter, the more bloody and off the meat is going to taste and that is actually due to a stress hormone the animal produces right at the end (I am sorry if this is upsetting, but you are eating the meat of an animal and its best to understand the process and product). So, buy organic on sale or buy local, humanely raised in bulk from the farm down the road, whenever possible. 5. Nut butters. Almond is better than peanut (which itself is a legume). But either way, organic if possible because of the issue with pesticides. One of my local grocery stores offers nut butters in bulk where you actually grind your own right there in the store. You can add a little salt when you get home or see if you like your nut butters completely naked. 6. Whole-grain breads, pastas and wraps. Yes, I understand the gluten-free way and I appreciate the fact that many of us now port bread bellies due to our consumption of wheat (and many wheat breads are super unhealthy). That said, look for SPROUTED breads such as Ezekiel or Trader Joes brand ones. These grains have been sprouted into plant form and then combined with precious little gluten. They do NOT contain flour (ground grains). These breads are not as soft as Wonder White and the wraps are not as supple as the hydrogenated oil supermarket ones, but these breads and wraps are packed with protein, very low on the Glycemic Index (dont spike your blood sugar) and are fast, easy and great for holding other yummy stuff like veggies, proteins and spreads. 7. Cottage cheese. Not everyones cup of tea, but this stuff is protein-packed, easy to eat with fruit or veggies and fast. Just make sure you check the label. The lower the fat content, usually the higher the sodium count. They also tend to add sweetener to the non-fat kind. Go figure. 8. Legumes (beans, lentils). We will do an entire POST on why you should buy these sprouted or sprout your own but for now, just know these can be oh-so-good for you. Very high in protein and fiber and low in carbs. 9. Bananas. The perfect pre-workout food (an hour before you workout) and a great recovery food after youre done. Just remember that these dudes spike your blood sugar so go easy on them the rest of the day. Great for an afternoon pick-me-up instead of a shot of espresso or a jolt of pop. 10. Oats, brown rice and quinoa. Each of these deserve their own spotlight, especially quinoa which is an ancient grain-like seed that is packed with protein. But all of these are great energy foods. Recent studies have shown the importance of buying organic brown rice due to how rice is grown and how pesticides interact with it out on the rice paddy. Quinoa, since it grows at 12K + feet, tends to be organic already (not a lot of bugs can survive that elevation even if there were Big Food people up there wanting to spray down the plants). 11. Potatoes. If youre going traditional, try the new potatoes--the little ones that have red, purple or yellow skins. The smaller they are, the less starch. The bakers are good, if dry which means you want to load them up with high calorie goodies. So be careful. The mashers (Yukon Golds) are very starchy (thus, they mash well) so go easy on them and eat earlier in the day. Sweet potatoes (yams) are a much superior option as they tend to balance your blood sugar, yet provide tons of energy and vitamins. They are great any time of day, but especially in the morning to give you energy for the day. At the risk of sounding like a broken record: all potatoes should be organic. They are pesticide magnets! 12. Protein powders. There are a ton of great whey and vegan options today. Check labels for added junk, though! If you go vegan, buy organic and sprouted. These are the BEST nutritionally and sprouting takes the music out of the musical fruit. Your friends will thank you. BONUS: 13. Shakeology. You might be wondering why I just didnt mention this in #12 above. Without going into a long explanation of how Shakeology differs from protein powders, suffice it to say its like a protein powder + 9 trips to the salad bar + your daily multivitamin + all the digestive enzymes/pre-and-probiotics your immune system needs + your post workout drink. Its a whole-foods based superfood nutrition raw food that forms the basis of our daily diet--hardcore workouts and all. Its a high-protein low-glycemic snack on its own or a complete meal with a couple of other delish things thrown in. 12 AFFORDABLE MUSCLE-BUILDING FOODS (or, what do super heroes eat?) As you probably know, this is not a workout group. Its simple a group--and a FREE one at that--where you can find some tips on eating healthy on a budget, saving time, making yummy food with a handful of ingredients and the like. That said, many of us DO workout or would LIKE to workout. So this post is for the gym-rat-wanna-bes and just people who appreciate knowledge about food and fitness. One more thing, my mom and I are what you might call Almost Vegan or Vegan Paleo. Weve been on a journey for while now that has found us going without certain foods and emphasizing others due to personal preference but also due to our understanding of nutritional science. If youre wondering what Im talking about here with these strange labels, dont worry about it. And also know that this group is NOT the place were going to focus on vegan eating or even grind an ax about Paleo foods. IN an attempt to reach out to the most people in the most friendly way, were playing it down the middle here in this group. We plan on doing a different kind of CLEAN EATS group each month, so at some point well probably focus an entire month on one of my favorite topics: Foods Non-Weird Vegans Who Dont Eat Tofurkey Cook. Or some such catchy title. With all that said, I present you with a Dozen Top Muscle-Building Foods... 1. Canned tuna. Just dont jump overboard it every day. Mercury is an issue at some point. 2. Eggs. Yes, it DOES matter if you buy the really crap big box store brand vs. one loaded with Omega-3. Chickens that have eaten good, non-factory floor food produce eggs with bright orange yolks that are indeed more nutritious. Take care of the hens and they will take care of you. 3. Chicken breast. Lean, packed with protein. If you are going to eat chicken, though, dont get it from chicken manufacturing plants located out in the middle of nowhere. Im not naming places or shaming brands, but you get it, right? Buy non-hormone-or-saline plumped chicken and youll not only feel good about how the chicken was raised but about what your family is actually consuming when they eat their dinner. 4. Lean ground whole meats, as in beef, chicken, turkey. Again, clean meat, not body parts is the key. Humanely treated animals produce better tasting meat; the more freaked out the animal is right before slaughter, the more bloody and off the meat is going to taste and that is actually due to a stress hormone the animal produces right at the end (I am sorry if this is upsetting, but you are eating the meat of an animal and its best to understand the process and product). So, buy organic on sale or buy local, humanely raised in bulk from the farm down the road, whenever possible. 5. Nut butters. Almond is better than peanut (which itself is a legume). But either way, organic if possible because of the issue with pesticides. One of my local grocery stores offers nut butters in bulk where you actually grind your own right there in the store. You can add a little salt when you get home or see if you like your nut butters completely naked. 6. Whole-grain breads, pastas and wraps. Yes, I understand the gluten-free way and I appreciate the fact that many of us now port bread bellies due to our consumption of wheat (and many wheat breads are super unhealthy). That said, look for SPROUTED breads such as Ezekiel or Trader Joes brand ones. These grains have been sprouted into plant form and then combined with precious little gluten. They do NOT contain flour (ground grains). These breads are not as soft as Wonder White and the wraps are not as supple as the hydrogenated oil supermarket ones, but these breads and wraps are packed with protein, very low on the Glycemic Index (dont spike your blood sugar) and are fast, easy and great for holding other yummy stuff like veggies, proteins and spreads. 7. Cottage cheese. Not everyones cup of tea, but this stuff is protein-packed, easy to eat with fruit or veggies and fast. Just make sure you check the label. The lower the fat content, usually the higher the sodium count. They also tend to add sweetener to the non-fat kind. Go figure. 8. Legumes (beans, lentils). We will do an entire POST on why you should buy these sprouted or sprout your own but for now, just know these can be oh-so-good for you. Very high in protein and fiber and low in carbs. 9. Bananas. The perfect pre-workout food (an hour before you workout) and a great recovery food after youre done. Just remember that these dudes spike your blood sugar so go easy on them the rest of the day. Great for an afternoon pick-me-up instead of a shot of espresso or a jolt of pop. 10. Oats, brown rice and quinoa. Each of these deserve their own spotlight, especially quinoa which is an ancient seed-like grain that is packed with protein. But all of these are great energy foods. Recent studies have shown the importance of buying organic brown rice due to how rice is grown and how pesticides interact with it out on the rice paddy. Quinoa, since it grows at 12K + feet tends to be organic already (not a lot of bugs can survive that elevation even if there were Big Food people up there wanting to spray down the plants). 11. Potatoes. If youre going traditional, try the new potatoes--the little ones that have red, purple or yellow skins. The smaller they are, the less starch. The bakers are good, if dry which means you want to load them up with high calorie goodies. So be careful. The mashers (Yukon Golds) are very starchy (thus, they mash well) so go easy on them and eat earlier in the day. Sweet potatoes (yams) are a much superior option as they tend to balance your blood sugar, yet provide tons of energy and vitamins. They are great any time of day, but especially in the morning to give you energy for the day. 12. Protein powders. There are a ton of great whey and vegan options today. Check labels for added junk, though! If you go vegan, buy organic and sprouted. These are the BEST nutritionally and sprouting takes the music out of the musical fruit. Your friends will thank you. BONUS: 13. Shakeology. You might be wondering why I just didnt mention this in #12 above. Without going into a long explanation of how Shakeology differs from protein powders, suffice it to say its like a protein powder + 9 trips to the salad bar + your daily multivitamin + your post workout drink. Its a whole-foods based superfood nutrition raw food that forms the basis of our daily diet--hardcore workouts and all. Its a high-protein low-glycemic snack on its own or a complete meal with a couple of other delish things thrown in.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 02:12:47 +0000
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