Energy boosting foods

Abi

Could anyone point me in the direction of what food I need to boost my energy levels? I'm silly busy most days, and really don't look after myself on the food front. I don't eat at normal meal-times, and often end up only eating when I'm starving. I know some life-style changes are in order, by making myself sit down long enough to eat something proper. I'm just so tired all the time, and when I wake up I always feel like I haven't slept enough.

I suppose time isn't my friend, so I need ideas of something quick and easy to make. I might also mention that I'm veggie too just to complicate things



Thanks in advance guys (:

EileenG

What sort of food do you eat now?

Abi

EileenG wrote: »

What sort of food do you eat now?

Well during the week is pretty bad, and I know straight off that the frequency in which I do eat factors largely into my energy levels being so low.. but if I do eat something it might be a bowl of pea's and carrots, or an apple running out the door. Stress has a tendency to put me off my food, so I've often gone a day or two without at times. Sometimes I'd have a bowl of rice, broccoli, and corn. I drink some soy milk, orange / multi-vitamin juice, and cranberry juice and water throughout the day.

Unimaginative and catastrophically bad all at once, I know. I've been googling vitamins etc, but I don't want to have to take a load of stuff if I can get it from food, and it's just a matter of some fresh idea's and being strict with myself about sitting down at regular meal-times.

I thought of posting in the veggie forum, but I think it's a bit more serious than looking for a few recipe ideas. My body feels wrecked all the time =/

cannonballer

I found that Berroca Boost was quite effective as a supplement that gave me a bit of energy.

You should look for low glycemic foods, that have a slow release of energy over a longer period. Otherwise I found that I would eat something sugary feel ok for a while then crash. Low energy release foods provide a low glycemic load, and can give you the energy you need.

Eat a breakfast, try never to miss it, its really important.

Porridge would help with a slow release of energy over a longer period. You can even get little microwavable preprepared pots.

Apples are great, sweet, contain fibre and will give you an energy boost.

Peanuts are an easily accessible snack that again are slow release foods.

Make lentil soup, have it in the fridge to quickly heat up whenever you have time.

Pasta also has beneficial complex carbohydrates that if combined with some lean protein chicken or tuna can be prepared at home and put in to little containers.

Should should also check with your GP your Iron and B12 levels which you may not be getting enough of in your diet. This can lead to tiredness.

Also try to make sure your actually getting enough calories that your body needs.

Latchy

Abi wrote: »

Could anyone point me in the direction of what food I need to boost my energy levels? I'm silly busy most days, and really don't look after myself on the food front. I don't eat at normal meal-times, and often end up only eating when I'm starving. I know some life-style changes are in order, by making myself sit down long enough to eat something proper. I'm just so tired all the time, and when I wake up I always feel like I haven't slept enough.

I suppose time isn't my friend, so I need ideas of something quick and easy to make. I might also mention that I'm veggie too just to complicate things



Thanks in advance guys (:

Hey Abi

Just following on advice to to what previous poster gave .I know your veggie and somewhat restricted to what you can eat but a good multi vitamin like Centrum is something you should consider to boost your flagging energy and increse your appetite , only some of the ingredients in these products might be on your banned list .

Some foods that are handy to have in are peanut butter , jams ,bananas , pasta , sandwich fillers like coleslaw , sunflower seeds , tuna salads with sweetcorn ,beans and pulses that are high in protein, calcium, potassium, iron and essential B vitamins ( as veggie your probably have some of these in your diet ) and of couse some cereals are great first thing in the morning if in a hurry .

There are also breakfast biscuits called beiVita wihich relese carbohydrates over a period of hrs to keep you on the move in the morning and dont forget to top up on the water to throughout the day .

Abi

[QUOTE=cannonballer;71422314]I found that Berroca Boost was quite effective as a supplement that gave me a bit of energy.[/quote]
This I've heard good things about, and will definitely pick some up.

You should look for low glycemic foods, that have a slow release of energy over a longer period. Otherwise I found that I would eat something sugary feel ok for a while then crash. Low energy release foods provide a low glycemic load, and can give you the energy you need.

Eat a breakfast, try never to miss it, its really important.

Porridge would help with a slow release of energy over a longer period. You can even get little microwavable preprepared pots.

I haven't had porridge in quite a while actually, some sliced fruit could be nice with that.

Apples are great, sweet, contain fibre and will give you an energy boost.

Peanuts are an easily accessible snack that again are slow release foods.

Make lentil soup, have it in the fridge to quickly heat up whenever you have time.

Apples and peanuts I snack on anyway, the lentil soup I'll have to try out.

Pasta also has beneficial complex carbohydrates that if combined with some lean protein chicken or tuna can be prepared at home and put in to little containers.

Pasta I do like, (obviously without the meat being veggie). I love crunchy veg with it like broccoli, carrots and peppers. I might have a problem on the pasta front though, I've always eaten it and chose to ignore it (because I love pasta too much) but I think I've a wheat intolerance. Whenever I eat it, even in small amounts it wreaks havoc on my stomach.

Should should also check with your GP your Iron and B12 levels which you may not be getting enough of in your diet. This can lead to tiredness.

Also try to make sure your actually getting enough calories that your body needs.

When nosing about online about fatigue I came across that about iron and B12 alright. I think I'll get the doc to look into it as well as my problem with wheat. At present, I doubt I'm getting the calories that I need, but I'm working on it

Latchy wrote: »

Hey Abi

Just following on advice to to what previous poster gave .I know your veggie and somewhat restricted to what you can eat but a good multi vitamin like Centrum is something you should consider to boost your flagging energy and increse your appetite , only some of the ingredients in these products might be on your banned list .

My mam swears by centrum, I'll have to have a look and see if theres anything in it I shouldn't take. actually I wouldnt be surprised if there was something about it in the veggie forum, will check it out

Some foods that are handy to have in are peanut butter , jams ,bananas , pasta , sandwich fillers like coleslaw , sunflower seeds , tuna salads with sweetcorn ,beans and pulses that are high in protein, calcium, potassium, iron and essential B vitamins ( as veggie your probably have some of these in your diet ) and of couse some cereals are great first thing in the morning if in a hurry .

I used to buy sunflower seeds by the truck loads, I dunno how I got out of the habit of doing that =/ sweetcorn is another one of the things I just eat bowlfuls of, so Im okay on that front. Coleslaw with bread and cheese is something I'd eat too, although I'm going to have to look into the bread side of things.

gaeilgegrinds1

What food would give energy and aid a person trying to lose weight? I'm just after having my second baby and eager to get back into shape, am training hard too but quite hungry! Snacks on the go preferably!

EileenG

Difficult one, because by definition, high energy foods are high calorie foods.

A high protein breakfast, especially fish, is supposed to make you feel as if you have steady energy for hours without hunger.

ivanc

cannonballer wrote: »

You should look for low glycemic foods, that have a slow release of energy over a longer period. Otherwise I found that I would eat something sugary feel ok for a while then crash. Low energy release foods provide a low glycemic load, and can give you the energy you need.

I'm with you on that. Have you tried this?