If you work out frequently, investing in a blender is one of the best choices you can make for your health and fitness.
Though you are burning calories and expending energy, unless you are actively refueling your body with the right nutrients, I’m afraid your progress might be limited.
Like most athletes, my younger self was only concerned about macronutrients like proteins and carbohydrates. Muscle building was the goal since more muscle meant better strength and athletic performance.
Only in the later stages of my career, when my body had slowed down in its natural recovery did I start to understand the importance of micronutrients like vitamins and minerals.
That’s when I discovered blending was one of the best ways to get the essential micronutrients I needed.
Here are three reasons to start juicing if you are a workout warrior.
Juices Are Natural Nutrient Dense Concoctions
Vegetables and greens are great sources of micronutrients.
However, cooking them at high temperatures denatures the food and kills most of the vitamins and minerals.
The advantages of blending your vegetables are two-fold.
First, you are able to pack so much more vegetables in juice than if you were to eat them. This allows you to mix different greens for even more micronutrient content.
Second, if you were to blend your vegetables, you not only get your vitamins and minerals but also the healthy fiber and pulp that comes with it.
Vegetables contain phytochemicals – antioxidant compounds – mostly found in the fibrous membranes. These antioxidants help prevent damage to cells and fight free-radicals in the body associated with disease and ageing.
Juices Are Easily Absorbed
After a workout when you are dehydrated and tired, a vegetable drink can help perk you right up.
Unlike eating vegetables, where the body needs time to break down the food, juice is easily absorbed and digested.
Furthermore, if you are blending these vegetables raw, it is minimally processed. This provides a concentrated dose of vitamins, minerals and enzymes that your body needs without any other preservatives or artificial sugars.
Athletes who need to recover quickly in between workouts or trainings will appreciate the value of getting their nutrients in a natural all-in-one blended drink.
Juices Reduce Acidity In The Body
Higher stress and consumption of processed foods have added unwanted acidity into our bodies.
Vegetables are naturally alkaline forming and can counteract the acidity in our bodies. Vegetable juice are easily absorbed and can quickly regulate the body’s pH levels. Free radicals as mentioned earlier, are oxidizing agents that are responsible for ageing and its effects like fluid buildup or stiff joints.
Vegetable juices will neutralize these free radicals. I firmly believe my regular consumption of raw vegetable juice helped to extend my career by a few years.
Vegetable drinks often have a stigma of tasting bad. There are different ways to blend your juices to make it more palatable.
My juices are raw and natural. I go with the simplest of ingredients – kale, ginger, lemon and parsley.
Ginger is an anti-inflammatory agent, as is turmeric. Furthermore, the bitterness of the lemon and the heat from the ginger combine well for my taste.
By adding different ingredients, particularly fruits,, you can add a little sweetness and achieve a taste profile to your liking and also get a host of other health benefits.
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