In this article, I will reveal to you that in addition to training hard, Messi is worth learning from in terms of diet, so that we can also follow Messi to eat great physical fitness.
1. Eat less polished rice and white noodles and eat more whole grains as staple foods
When he was young, Messi's favorite staple food was pizza, which was made of white flour and raised blood sugar quickly. When blood sugar rises quickly, the body will use the hypoglycemic mechanism, which will transport blood sugar to cells to supply energy, and will also be converted into liver glycogen for storage, and excess blood sugar will be converted into fat and accumulated.
We all know that athletes want to reduce body fat and increase muscle to increase strength, so we must eat less food that raises blood sugar, but Messi not only likes to eat pizza, but also likes to drink sugary carbonated drinks, which raise blood sugar faster. In addition, compared with whole grains, polished rice and white flour lose more B vitamins, and nutritional deficiencies will also affect the performance of athletes.
According to reports, after 2014, in order to extend his career, Messi followed the advice of Italian nutritionist Giuliano Poser and began to stay away from pizza and carbonated drinks, and switched to whole grains and potatoes as staple foods, such as brown rice, oats, and potatoes.
▲Picture: Since 2014, Messi has stayed away from pizza and carbonated drinks
If you think the whole grain taste is too rough, whole grains and miscellaneous beans account for 1/3~1/2 of the staple food. In addition, it should be reminded that carbohydrates have the effect of saving protein, which means that if carbohydrate intake is insufficient, it will increase muscle loss.
Therefore, we must eat staple food, if you lose weight, eat at least 1 fist per meal, and if you don't lose weight, it is recommended to eat at least 1.5 fists per meal.
2. Eat less red meat and more poultry and fish
The traditional Argentine diet is mainly meat, and their national dishes are grilled steaks, ribs, and sausages, which are all red meat, and Messi, as an Argentine, loves to eat red meat.
▲Picture: Messi barbecue [1]
However, eating too much red meat will increase the intake of saturated fatty acids, which not only affects heart health, but also promotes inflammation, affects muscle synthesis, and then affects physical performance. [2]
So he later followed the advice of his nutritionist and greatly reduced the amount of red meat he ate, mainly eating chicken and fish, and some media reported that Messi's favorite dish was roasted chicken with root vegetables.
▲ Picture: Root vegetable grilled chicken[3]
In addition, he often eats tuna, salmon, and anchovies for dinner. Among them, the DHA rich in tuna and salmon has strong anti-inflammatory ability, which is very good for cardiovascular health.
We Chinese people also eat a lot of red meat and less poultry and fish, Messi has adjusted his diet, let's adjust it too.
It is best to control red meat within 50 grams per day, about 3-4 rolls of beef rolls in shabu-shabu, fish is best eaten 2-3 times a week, give priority to DHA-rich salmon, mackerel, yellow croaker, sea bass, and it is best to eat 1 palm-sized each time.
In addition, protein is the material basis of muscle synthesis, and the total amount must be sufficiently intaked, so it is also recommended to drink 1-2 packs of milk every day, eat 1 egg, eat 4-5 pieces of mahjong-sized tofu, if some of the foods are not like to eat, you can also drink some protein powder to supplement protein, like Macy's will drink protein shakes with various micronutrients.
3. Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables
We all know that a lot of exercise will produce a lot of free radicals, and the accumulation of a large number of free radicals will cause oxidative stress, which directly affects the body's recovery and exercise ability.
In addition, a lot of exercise itself will also increase the body's consumption of various vitamins, so to maintain a good physical condition, you must eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. Because they are the richest in vitamins such as vitamin C and tocopherol, as well as antioxidants such as β-carotene, lycopene, and anthocyanins among all major food categories.
In addition to a lot of exercise, factors such as sun exposure, staying up late, and stress can also produce free radicals, so we should all eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, and it is recommended to eat 5 fists of vegetables and 2-3 fists of fruits a day.
4. Cooking oil increases the amount rich in oleic acid
Macy's cooking oil is mainly olive oil, which is rich in oleic acid that can be anti-inflammatory, and it is also recommended that we all eat some olive oil, or other oleic acid-rich oils such as tea oil, or peanut oil and "high oleic acid" sunflower oil clearly marked on the package.
This is because most of the food we usually eat is soybean oil, corn oil, and sunflower oil, which are rich in n-6 fatty acids that are pro-inflammatory.
In addition, frying can also produce pro-inflammatory ingredients, so Macy's basically doesn't eat it, and the picture below is an occasional attempt at hamburger fries on vacation.
▲Picture: Occasionally eat fried food
5. Drink more water and don't drink alcohol
Compared with sweet drinks, water has no energy and does not raise blood sugar, it is a very healthy drink, and the water content of muscles is as high as more than 70%, and lack of water directly affects sports performance [4], so nutritionists recommend that Messi stay away from sweet drinks and change to water to quench thirst every day.
▲Picture: Messi drinking water
▲Picture: Messi drinking water
In addition, if you want to be in good shape, it is best not to drink, because alcohol will affect the absorption of vitamins and increase the risk of malnutrition; Alcohol is still a strong diuretic, which will increase dehydration and affect exercise performance; In addition, alcohol can also affect motor coordination and reaction speed.
To maintain good physical fitness, it is recommended to start from the above 5 points in terms of diet, and exercise should also keep up, so that you can become better like Messi.
