What is a Superfood?

There are lots of foods out there that are packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, essential fatty acids and other beneficial substances. But there are some foods that are packed with even more goodness; they are known as ‘superfoods.’

Superfoods have a load of health benefits, which can include:

• Helps to regulate metabolism and burn body fat
• Protect your organs from toxins
• Lower cholesterol and blood pressure
• Reduces inflammation in the body
• Preventing heart disease & cancer
• Promotes digestive health

Why you should eat superfoods?

The simple answer is, because of the fantastic health benefits they offer! The foods listed below are rich in nutrients and are great for keeping your body and mind the healthiest it can be. Once you start eating superfoods on a regular basis, you will start to notice a difference in how you look, and more importantly, how you feel.

When you eat the foods listed below on a regular basis, it will make your body healthier, help your body to flush out toxins more frequently and give you an all over healthy glow!

Superfoods are great for helping you lose or maintain your weight and if you are consuming these foods on a regular basis, you may not have to take annoying vitamin or mineral supplements.

There is no actual Superfoods list, but here are a few that you should try and include in your life each day, or every couple of days:

Broccoli:

• Loaded with Vitamin C, folic acid and carotenoids
• Protects your cells from damage of free radicals, enhance your immune system and improve reproductive health
• Just 1 serve – 1 medium stalk provides way over your recommended daily amount of vitamin K – which helps build strong bones and plays an important role in blood clotting.
• Apparently having half a cup of broccoli a day is said to help prevent a number of cancers – in particular lung, colon, rectum and stomach.
• Eat it cooked or raw!

Lentils

• One of the most nutritious legumes
• Great source of cholesterol lowering fibre and lean protein
• Packed full of Iron and B vitamins and are very filling
• Eat these on a regular basis to help maintain a healthy heart – Folate and magnesium help to improve the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout your body

Sweet Potatoes:

• Packed full of Carotenoids, Vitamin C, potassium and fibre, one of my favourite vegies are ranked among the highest on the nutrition scale.
• They can help to stabilise blood sugar
• You can eat them mashed, roasted, steamed
• Great addition to salads as well!
• 1 small sweet potato a day is plenty

Blueberries

• Full of antioxidants, this juicy, deep blue/purple berry has been proven to slow the growth of some cancerous tumors.
• Blueberry extracts have also been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties and help prevent infectious bacteria from clinging to the walls of the gut, bladder and urethra.
• Blueberries are also well known for their anti-aging effects!
• Add a handful to your porridge of a morning!

Wild Salmon

• Packed full of omega 3 fats, salmon (in particularly wild salmon) can help reduce the risk of heart attacks
• Great for helping you feel full and a great source of lean protein
• Contains lots of Vitamin D and selenium, which is great for healthy hair, skin, nails and bones
• It is best to consume this superfood at least twice a week for optimal benefits

Avocado

• Don’t be afraid to eat good fats and avocado is one of the best you can eat!
• Only have around 1/2 an avocado a day – a 1/4 at lunch and a 1/4 at dinner!
• Avocado’s aid your digestion and is full of fibre and protein
• Will help you feel fuller for longer too!

Eggs

• Often get a bad rep, but eggs are full of protein and help to keep you fuller for longer, stopping you from snacking on naughty stuff!
• No more than 2 a day!
• For more great info on eggs, visit http://www.blueskyfitness.com.au/all-about-eggs/

Kale:

• A leafy green vegie, its high in beta carotene, iron and folate
• Packed with fibre, it also keeps you fuller for longer and helps improve your digestive health
• A cup full of cooked kale provides more than half your recommended daily amount of vitamin C.
• Perfect to add to juices or smoothies!

Goji Berries

• My favourite thing to add to my breakfast at the moment
• Often called the most nutritionally dense food on earth
• Contain more vitamins C than oranges, more beta carotene than carrots and more iron than red meat
• It comes from the Himalayan fruit is a great source of B vitamins and antioxidants and contains 15 amino acids.
• Goji has been used medicinally in China for hundreds of years and is thought to improve blood circulation, strength in limbs, improve your eyesight, protect your liver, increase libido and boost immune function!
• Around a tablespoon a day is enough

Chia Seeds (my favourite!)

• Gluten free
• Super high in dietary fibre, making it great for digestion and healing digestion issues.
• Contains 20% Omega 3, making it a super food for the brain and heart.
• Has eight times more Omega 3 than salmon!
• Boasts 20% protein
• A complete protein with all 8 essential amino acids
• High in antioxidants (It has a four times higher ORAC value than blueberries)
• Contains five times more calcium than milk
• Contains seven times more vitamin C than oranges
• Contains three times more iron than spinach
• Contains twice the potassium content of banana
• Has a positive impact balancing blood glucose levels (making it awesome for diabetics)
• Makes a great egg replacement. Just combine with water to form a gel, and add it to recipes that call for egg.
• So get eating it today!
• Chia is great on porrdige, salads etc.
• Around 1 tablespoon a day is enough – but make sure you are drinking your 2L (min) of water!

There are many more so called ‘superfoods’, such as:

• Pomegranates
• Maca
• Nuts/seeds – in particular almonds
• Some teas
• Acai
• Spirulina
• Cinnamon
• Spinach

Eat Superfoods, enjoy Superfoods and include as many of them as you possibly can in your daily life – as part of your healthy lifestyle!

Amanda is a mum to 2 year old Chelsea, a Personal Trainer and owns her own Women’s Only Outdoor Fitness Business, Blue Sky Health & Fitness, based in Melbourne. Blue Sky Fitness offers Women of all ages, sizes and abilities a supportive & friendly environment in which to get fit, get healthy & be happy (but it’s also challenging!) For more information on Blue Sky Health & Fitness classes, please visitwww.blueskyfitness.com.au

Amanda has recently launched Mummy Bootcamp @ Home, to help women (mums in particular) lose weight, tone up & feel great about themselves. For more information on the 28 Day Body & Mind Transformation Bootcamp visit www.mummybootcampathome.com.au