5 Pre-and Post-Yoga & Workout Food Tips

How often do you wake up and feel like you could go right back to sleep?

Do you get fatigued halfway through your exercises, whether it be yoga, spinning, running or lifting weights where you feel like you're already burnt out?

Do you feel like you aren’t getting any physical results and get frustrated like you're stuck in a rut, that no matter how much you work out you aren’t building strength and muscle?

Here are a few very easy tips to mix up your dietary regimen and give you that extra boost where it counts!

1.When you wake up drink at least one cup of water to flush to toxins in your body and to bath the cells. You want to drink at least half your body weight in ounces of water every day (i.e. if you weigh 100lbs drink 50 ounces of water)

2. Next try making a protein shake with a raw live protein powder (I like “Sun Warriors” protein powder). I support this brand because its assimilation rate is 98.2% and it's raw, not cooked so you aren’t killing all the enzymes in the product… Add the protein powder and few dates to the mix. Dates are high in glucose and they quickly turn to glycogen in the liver giving you a steady stream of energy (so you don’t burn out half way through your workout but are continually fueled through your physical activity). Add water or your favorite almond milk and maybe a banana or two then blend and drink. This will give your muscles the nutrients, energy and boost that they need..

3. After your workout eat something with alkaline. I suggest organic grapes with a protein of some kind. The reason you want to eat something with alkaline after working out is your muscles are loaded with lactic acid and your body is very acidic. So you want to have something with alkaline to move out the acidity so you can recover faster... Not to mention if you eat organic grapes and a raw live protein drink after your workout the sugar in the grapes will help the protein get into your bloodstream faster, encouraging the building of muscle tissue.

4. Eat lots of fresh vegetables, greens, fruits, nuts and seed through out your day. The more raw food you eat, the more alkaline you'll have, and you'll also be building a storage depot of enzymes that will keep you young, vibrant and healthy.

5. Here's a list of alkaline forming foods to eat daily:

Grapefruits, lemon, limes, mangos, melons, papaya, apples, avocados, bananas, most berries, dates, grapes, nectarines, oranges, peaches, pears, pineapple, pomegranate, ginger root, stevia, asparagus, beets, bell pepper, carrots, broccoli, celery, cucumbers, sprouts, green beans, squash, yams, dill, zucchini, sea vegetables, onions, garlic, and mixed greens.

These are just a few tips that I practice and use on my clients and have seen results and changes in performance, energy and vitality. Enjoy!

Published February 16, 2012 at 3:00 PM

About Tamal Dodge
Tamal Dodge is one of the youngest and most respected yoga instructors in the world. He was born and raised in his families yoga ashram in Hawaii and has been teaching and practicing yoga since childhood. Tamal co-founded The Yoga Collective in Santa Monica CA (one of the largest yoga centers in Los Angeles) and has been featured in Self magazine, Yogi Times, Better Homes and Gardens, Martha Stewart Living Radio, Fit TV, LA Yoga magazine and numerous other publications nationally and internationally. Tamal also has created a yoga DVD entitled “Hatha and Flow Yoga for Beginners” which is currently sold worldwide. He also tours the country teaching workshops and yoga teacher trainings. Tamal’s goal is to help people be “in the world but not of the world” to become truly peaceful and happy. Connect with Tamal at tamalyoga.com