The Benefits of Olives Are Ideal for Athletes
There’s a lot of food recommendations for people who do sports regularly. Egg whites, rice or chicken are some of them. Did you know that olives are also ideal for athletes? The benefits of olives and their properties are many, and they’re also really easy to add to different dishes.
If you want to know everything about this typical food used in the Mediterranean diet, keep reading! We’re sure that from now on, you’re going to start including them in your diet.
Nutritional value and the benefits of olives
We need to know the main properties of any food, so it’s important to analyze its nutritional value. You can find this information on its packaging, and it’s usually related to the daily recommended amount of each nutrient.
In the case of olives, they contain 115 calories per every 100 grams; this is a very small amount, so there’s no reason to limit its consumption. Besides, they also contain 12 percent of fats and 4,8 grams of fiber, proteins and a small amount of sodium.
It’s important to point out that this data applies to natural olives. If you eat them stuffed or dressed, their values might change. Either way, olives are usually a healthy choice whether they’re stuffed or dressed.
Benefits of olives for athletes
Athletes need to consume light foods that also give them the energy they need to produce effort. After a training session, athletes are dehydrated and need to recover from their workouts.
Olives help to hydrate your body while giving you a small number of calories. Also, they contain fiber and essential amino acids. These two nutrients improve your recovery and maximize your results.
Another important aspect is that they don’t contain cholesterol, so they can be beneficial for everyone. Some experts indicate that the recommended daily amount is seven olives.
Eating this amount would give you the maximum benefits of olives without excessive salt or calories. But keep in mind that we usually don’t eat them in their natural state and pickled olives often contain added salt.
Olives also help you to avoid the annoying cramps that many athletes suffer from. If you tend to experience them, we recommend that you eat a few olives before and after training.
How to incorporate olives into your daily diet
Now that it’s clear that olives are very healthy, you should try to eat them regularly. Because they’re a food that you eat raw, sometimes it’s hard to add it to your dishes.
Here, we’ll suggest some ideas to eat olives in different ways and pair them with healthy foods. We’re sure you’ll want to try them after reading about them!
Salad
It’s the most traditional dish that includes olives. Whether they’re green or black olives and in a tomato and lettuce salad. Whatever you choose, olives will mix perfectly and give your salad a spark of flavor.
Skewers
Skewers are a common snack in bars around Spain. You can enjoy them while you drink with your friends or family, or buy olives and prepare them yourself. Having a container with olive skewers in the fridge will prevent you from eating unhealthy snacks when you’re feeling hungry.
Olive paté
It’s one of the most unknown patés and we don’t understand why; it tastes spectacular. With this paté, you can have it on toast or enjoy it in a sandwich. That’s how easy it is to have olives as a snack or for a light dinner.
These are just a few ways to eat olives. You can also add them to a Russian salad– even though the traditional recipe doesn’t include them- or cook your own bread loaf including olives in the preparation.
If you’re an athlete, olives may be interesting for you. Its consumption is recommended for everyone, but athletes in particular, can enjoy all the benefits of olives and their properties. Besides, as you were able to see, it’s really easy to eat them in different ways.