Working out hard and eating high-protein snacks might leave you with zilch results.
While some people reach for energy bars and other protein-packed foods after exercising to replenish their protein stores, this habit could actually be sabotaging your weight management efforts.
A research team from Miguel Hernández at the University of Elche in Spain revealed after analyzing 561 high-protein functional foods.
The team examined protein bars, powders, and high-protein yogurts, evaluating their nutritional value using the World Health Organization’s (WHO) dietary criteria.
These WHO guidelines are the gold standard for assessing food’s nutritional content and its impact on health.
As a result, 90.8% of these high-protein foods were not so great for your health.
While protein bars might be low in carbs, they pack an average of 48% more saturated fat. Saturated fat is a sneaky culprit behind weight gain and sky-high cholesterol levels, ramping up the risk of heart disease. Dairy-based options, such as protein powder and yogurts, were also found to be fat bombs.
While high-protein foods might be a godsend for certain groups, such as older people, who need an extra protein boost, they are not a must-have for the average healthy adult.
Also, they advise constantly checking the nutrition label before tossing that protein-packed snack into your cart.
For all you exercise phones out there, just four minutes a day is better than nothing at all.
Even if you don’t go to the gym regularly, recent research shows that adding just four minutes of high-intensity activities like stair climbing to your daily routine could slash your heart attack risk in half.
The British Journal of Sports Medicine dropped this game-changing info courtesy of a dream team of scientists from Australia, the UK, Spain, Denmark, and Canada.
Even if you’re not a fitness fanatic, you can cut your risk of major heart issues by 50% with just 90 seconds to 4 minutes of heart-pumping activities. We’re talking about everyday stuff like sprinting upstairs, power-walking to catch your bus, or lugging heavy grocery bags.
A study published last October in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, courtesy of researchers from the University of Basel and the University of Leicester, found that cranking up the intensity of your physical activities significantly lowers your risk of kicking the bucket early from any cause.
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