Eat for More Energy
Energy management should be one of the principal concerns of the working man, and yet the average guy fuels his body the way he gases up his vehicle: when it's running on fumes. It's a red-warning-light response, and it usually triggers a pit stop for a café au lait and a croissant. Why we eat like the French when there's work to be done, we'll never know.
But there's a better way to wake up that doesn't involve overpriced coffee: Eat smart. And eat often. More specifically, snack often. By snacking on the right foods at strategic times, you'll keep your energy levels stoked all day, says sports nutritionist Nancy Clark, R.D. Here's what to eat when, with the prep time you've got.
7 a.m.: Jump-Start Your Body
They call it breakfast for a reason: You haven't eaten for at least 8 hours. Your blood-sugar level is at its lowest ebb, and now it's time to fuel up with protein and some fat, but mostly with complex carbohydrates.
At home: Grab a bowl and mix together a three-to-one ratio of Fiber One cereal plus Cap'n Crunch's Peanut Butter Crunch. Add 1/2 cup of 2 percent milk. That'll give you fat, protein, and long-burning fiber, plus a little sweetness to spike your blood sugar and help wake you up. Researchers at Cardiff University in Wales gave 150 men and women either high-fiber or low-fiber cereal every morning for 2 weeks. At the end of the study, those people who ate the most fiber also reported feeling the most energetic. "Fiber helps slow down the absorption of food in the stomach, so you have more energy over a sustained period of time," says Elizabeth Kunkel, Ph.D., R.D., a professor of food science at Clemson University.
In the car: Munch on a pack of Frito-Lay Trail Mix. These single-serving tubes of nuts, raisins, and chocolate chips cost just a dollar, and you can dump one right into your mouth while you navigate rush-hour traffic. The raisins provide potassium—a mineral your body needs to convert blood sugar into energy. As for the nuts, they're high in magnesium. When magnesium levels are low, your body hikes its production of lactic acid—the same fatigue-inducing substance that causes your muscles to burn when you're pushing yourself to crank out that third superset.
At your desk: Dig into Knudsen Cottage Doubles while checking your e-mail. These to-go bowls of cottage cheese come with a side of fruit. Eat them separately or stir the fruit into the cottage cheese to make it more flavorful. Besides being high in muscle-building protein, cottage cheese is a good source of calcium and phosphorus, two minerals that help build your muscles' energy reserves. Researchers in Denmark found that men who replaced 20 percent of the carbohydrates in their diet with a high-protein food like cottage cheese not only had more energy, but also revved up their metabolisms, increasing the number of calories they burned each day by up to 5 percent.
10:30 a.m.: Prevent Midmorning Malaise
It takes your body 2 to 3 hours to break down the sugars in the food you eat, release them into your bloodstream, and convert them into energy. Go longer than that without eating again and your energy levels will start to fade.
At your desk: Drink a bottle of lightly sweetened tea—we like Tazo and Honest Tea. The sugar will help to elevate your blood sugar, while the caffeine improves your mental alertness. Compounds in the tea itself also help boost metabolism. Swiss researchers found that men who drank green tea burned more calories during the day than men who didn't; USDA researchers made a similar discovery regarding men drinking black tea. And if that weren't enough, drinking tea also helps prevent dehydration. "Losing just 2 percent of your body's water weight can decrease energy levels by 20 percent," says Susan M. Kleiner, Ph.D., R.D., author of Power Eating.
In a catered meeting: Skip the doughnuts and pastries and grab a handful of fresh berries instead. Since fruit breaks down slowly in the body, it provides a more gradual dose of sugar for the bloodstream. "Your brain is constantly burning sugar for fuel, so maintaining an adequate supply of sugar in your bloodstream at all times is one of the key strategies for keeping energy levels high," says J. Mark Davis, Ph.D., a professor of exercise science at the University of South Carolina.
Noon: Eat a Power Lunch
By lunchtime, your blood-sugar level doesn't need an immediate boost. Instead, stock up on sources of long-term energy to get you to quitting time.
At a business lunch: Order the tuna fillet. The omega-3s found in fish are one of the primary building blocks of brain tissue, so they're vital for keeping your mind sharp. "Omega-3s also increase the flexibility of red blood cells, boosting bloodflow and the supply of energy-providing oxygen throughout the body," says Douglas Bibus, Ph.D., a lipid researcher at the University of Minnesota and editor of Omega-3 News.
In the cafeteria: Drizzle olive oil and vinaigrette dressing over a salad topped with chicken, ham, or hard-boiled egg. The oil in the dressing will help slow down digestion of the protein and carbs in the salad, stabilizing blood-sugar levels and keeping energy levels high, says Richard Podell, M.D., a clinical professor of medicine at Robert Wood Johnson medical school in New Jersey.
At the drive-thru: Order a Taco Bell bean burrito with extra hot sauce. Australian researchers found that men who'd eaten spicy foods stayed alert and energetic longer than men who'd eaten other foods. A burrito's power comes from its beans, which are rich in riboflavin and niacin—two vitamins your body needs to convert sugar into energy.
3:30 p.m.: Beat the Afternoon Slump
Work stress has taken its toll. Fight fatigue with these.
In the cafeteria: Grab a carton of Dannon Light n' Fit yogurt when your energy starts to waver. High-protein foods like yogurt are good sources of amino acids, such as tyrosine. "The body uses tyrosine to create a chemical called norepinephrine, which helps reduce the effects of stress, boost energy levels, and keep the brain alert," says tyrosine expert Jan Berend Deijen, Ph.D.
At your desk: Snack on crackers and peanut butter, which provide quick carb energy plus long-burning protein and fat