Wet Foods for Optimal Weight Control Year Round

Runners, cross country skiers, speed skaters and cyclists are likely to be year round endurance athletes, including running, cycling and in-line/ice skating in our schedules throughout the more temperate months of the year. Yet despite all the exercise, many endurance athletes complain of training related weight gain. The more training they do, the heavier they get. What could explain this phenomenon? Well….we are all not equally gifted with our internal energy balance, that is, eating and drinking enough to rehydrate and refuel and meet our needs. Some of us have a poor drive for thirst during and after our training sessions and the older we get the weaker this drive tends to be. Instead of drinking, some may think they are hungry and will unconsciously eat…and often more than is needed….leading to weight gain, despite a high training volume. When was the last time you thought about using “wet foods” as a way to improve your hydration and achieve a leaner body weight…..year round?? While water, in any form, is excellent for re-hydrating after a sweaty workout, eating wet foods can increase your fluid intake by up to 25% while decreasing the amount of calories from the foods you eat. Check out these tips to help you to get started.

	REPLACE Dry Foods	WITH Wet Foods
Grains & Cereals	Bread, toast, crackers, pita Granola bars, cereal, popcorn Muffins, cookies, biscuits, waffles Cake, donuts, pastries, pie	Cooked oatmeal, Cream of wheat Quinoa/rice/couscous Barley risotto Spaghetti, macaroni, fusilli
Vegetables & Fruit	French Fries Potato chips/vegetable chips Dried fruit Baked fruit crumble Fruit pies	Fresh veggies and fruit Steamed or stir fried veggies Vegetable and fruit salads Pureed fruits, fruit compote Fruit and vegetable smoothies / Fruit yogurt
Milk & Alternatives	Brick cheeses / Soft cheeses Shredded or grated cheeses	Low fat/skim cottage cheese / Quark cheese Tzatziki (cucumber and yogurt)/ Greek yogurt Low fat/skim milk, chocolate milk or flavoured yogurt Soy  beverages
Meat & alternatives	Dried meats, sliced meats, roasted, grilled or barbecued meats Nuts and seeds, trail mix, nut butters Energy bars with soy protein	Poached or steamed fish / Meat or poultry stews Meat sauces / More bean than meat chili Tofu stir fried with veggies / Beef, barley, vegetable soup Hummus dip with raw veggies / Three bean salads Lentil or tofu vegetable soup Black beans with quinoa and veggies