Foods that will help to lower Inflammation
In my last article I went over how Stress can make you gain fat.
A big contributor to this is Inflammation.
Let go through to see what foods are beneficial to your body and will lower inflammation getting you back on track.
The main rule to lower inflammation in the body is simple. Eat the foods that won’t cause inflammation but for people to follow this seems to be difficult. Why? It could be lack of learning on this topic associated with what foods are beneficial and what foods are to be avoided.
The foods that are primarily related to increasing inflammation in the body are as follows:
– Sugars
– White Bread, White Rice, Pasta
– Vegetable oils
– Processed foods, foods high in trans and saturated fats
Another factor to keep in mind is oils and foods that are high in omega-6 fatty acids, which have an inflammatory effect should be consumed with a ratio of 3:1 with omega 3 fatty acids as opposed to the what we see today in the western world of 25:1 ratio, which has been a factor to healthier omega-3 fatty acids in oily fish and flaxseeds
This last section is a surprise for a lot people simply because for all our lives we are believed that we should eat our fats as they are all healthy. We are not taught in what ratios and what happens in our body when the ratios are wrong.
Your steps to reducing inflammation:
– Increase your plant based fresh foods such as:
Avocado, Tomato, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Mushroom, Berries, Pineapple, Apricot, Papaya, Asparagus, Garlic, Ginger, Lemon, Grapes, Cherries, Red Apples, Beans (all types), Onions, Sweet Potato, Chilli, Peppers, Green Tea, Spinach, Cucumber, Kale, cabbage, red grapes, grapefruit, carrot, beetroot, pear, celery
Include these types of plant based foods into your diet and it will help you substantially to lower inflammation.
– Herbs to include:
Turmeric, oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, pepper, mint, cinnamon
– Increase live cultures in your diet with foods such as:
Sauerkraut,
Greek natural yoghurt
Kefir
Tempeh
Miso
– Keep your intake of Healthy fats up in your diet but in a ratio of 3:1
(Omega6:omega3)
Omega 6 fats:
Avocado
Olive oil
Macadamia oil
Coconut oil
Olives
Mixed nuts
Seeds
Omega 3 fats:
Oily fish
Flaxseeds
Walnuts
– Organic Black coffee, green tea and black tea are known to have anti inflammatory effects and strong antioxidant properties
– Dark Chocolate – Yes that’s correct, chocolate is on the list. Keep it above 80% cacao for the antioxidant properties that breakdown the free radicals in the body. I personally enjoy a couple small pieces after training knowing the antioxidant properties in the dark chocolate will be a benefit for my recovery.
Animal Proteins:
Fresh Salmon
Grass fed lean beef (not grain)
Organic free range eggs
Free range chicken breast/Turkey breast
Having a diet rich in anti-inflammatory foods and high in nutrients will be such a benefit to you maintaining a healthy weight
Putting it all together:
For those of you who know me, you would know I’m always stating to eat frequently throughout the day and in correct portions.
Eating your smaller meals frequently will keep your cortisol levels at bay, help in increasing your insulin sensitivity, generate more heat throughout the body and assist with lowering inflammation.
Aim for a minimum of 4 meals throughout the day picking a choice of vegetable, protein and fat per meal.
To get a better idea of how many calories your going for here is a link of an article I wrote working out your daily calorie needs:
https://getmotivatedhealthandfitness.com.au/guide-many-calories-need/
Calculate your calories, divide them by 6. Once you do this, you will then realize what’s needed per meal to achieve your training goal
Any questions, feel free to ask