Unhealthy Foods that Sabotage your Workouts

Spend hours at the gym or doing cardio without noticing any kind of progress? Learn about the foods that can tamper with your workout results.

Are you working out diligently but not seeing any results? This might be it: you could be eating certain unhealthy foods that, even though they don’t seem harmful, are sabotaging your workouts.

To help you get back on track, we gathered a list of unhealthy foods that are likely behind your stumped efforts. You won’t believe how simple food can have such a big effect on your results.

Unhealthy foods and drinks that sabotage workouts

1. Beer

After working all day, we push ourselves to go to the gym. At the gym, we workout and meet our exercise goals. Leaving the gym, we bump into a couple of pals and why not get a beer? After all, we deserve it after a long day.

This situation sounds familiar, does it? But having a beer after working out just wastes the workout you just did.

Some people sincerely believe that beer only has few carbohydrates and contains a little over 100 calories, meaning that it can’t be such a harmful drink. And after working out, they might also think that their body needs to replace lost liquids to re-hydrate.

But having a beer does the exact opposite. Alcohol dehydrates, meaning that the body would need more time to recover.

2. Energy bars

Many people consider energy bars to be the perfect snack. They have grains, fruits and are portable. You can keep them in your bag or backpack to keep hunger at bay. But did you know that they might be the very reason behind your frustrating fitness results?

Energy bars are usually loaded with sugar. And if you eat several a day, you’re consuming unhealthy levels of sugar.

We suggest making your own energy bars. Making your own is the only way of keeping the sugar content low. Try these recipes for a deliciously healthy snack.

3. Commercial juices

After a workout, your body loses a considerable amount of liquids from meeting the physical demands and becomes dehydrated. So, the first thing you need to do is recuperate liquids.

If you drink commercial juices, stop! It’s a huge mistake. These juices contain high levels of sugar; check it out for yourself on the nutritional label. These sugars slow down your body’s metabolism and consequently, keep you from getting the results that you want.

Similar to what we said about energy bars, you should make your own juices. Squeezing juice isn’t hard. Besides, the taste is incomparable. Here are some ideas to keep your taste buds satisfied.

4. Fatty cured meats

If you’re into it, choosing the right kind of cured meat is crucial. Depending on what you choose, you can maximize your gym efforts or throw them into the trash.

Steer clear from varieties that have a high-fat content. They’re easy to spot because the fat is completely visible.

Instead, look for better options such as pork tenderloin, ham or cecina (cured beef). These varieties are a great source of proteins that’ll give you the nutrients you need after a good workout.

Conclusion on unhealthy foods

If you don’t follow a good diet, all your gym and workout efforts will be useless. Just as you read with us today, there are many unhealthy foods and drinks, which aren’t necessarily fast foods, that can ruin your workouts. Heed our list and remember that diet and exercise always go hand-in-hand. If you forget about one of them, your goals will be impossible to reach.