Brandi Swicegood, an EBOOST ambassador recently stepped up her training and really needed to dial in her nutrition.
A big misconception when it comes to training more is that people then think they can eat a pint of ice cream and all be good. Although you can surely eat some ice cream, it is more about balance rather than burning a bunch more calories and then eating whatever you want. Remember, we need to fuel our bodies properly to get us effectively through each workout. Think of it this way – there is a huge difference between performing a workout fueled by ice cream, then performing a workout fueled by a chicken, rice, broccoli. Brandi understood the difference and decided to do something about it.
‘Last month, I started working with Kim Eagle, an Austin-based nutrition coach who helps athletes (and non-athletes) improve their eating habits. It’s hard to exaggerate just how much her program improved not only my training but my understanding of how critical fueling appropriately is when you spend nearly 20 hours a week training… When I started working with Kim this time around, it wasn’t about losing weight. She asked me what I wanted to achieve, and I told her I cared less about dropping pounds than about dropping time from my swim, bike and run.’
The largest rules for Brandi to follow are:
- ONE cocktail OR dessert per week
- no packaged foods like chips and pretzels
- only whole grains and brown rice, veggies with every meal
- no more than 75 grams of sugar
- no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium daily
Sure a lot of us can eat grilled chicken or salmon, broccoli, and a sweet potato every night for dinner but sometimes we need more spice in our life. Brandi took on the challenge and used EBOOST PRIME to create a delicious snack that falls within her nutrition guidelines.
Peanut Butter Banana Protein Bars
ingredients
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup EBOOST PRIME, vanilla
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
1 cup peanut butter
1/4 applesauce
2 brown bananas, mashed
instructions
- Preheat over to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the oats on the paper and toast 10 minutes (I dusted the oats with cinnamon because everything is better with cinnamon).
- Allow the oats to cool.
- Mix together the oats, protein powder, flour, and flaxseed. Then add the peanut butter, honey (or applesauce) and bananas and stir until combined.
- Press the dough onto the parchment paper in a half-inch layer.
- Bake about 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Cut into bars while the dough is warm.
- When the dough is cool, individually wrap the bars in plastic wrap and refrigerate until you pull it out to head to your workout.
Nutritional info: (about 15 servings) Calories: 204; Fat 8.6g; Carbs 23g; Sugars 8.7g, Protein 9g
Brandi’s Pro Tip: Find a pre-workout fuel that has 10-15g of protein to prevent muscle fatigue. Eat it 30-60 minutes before you workout. Then after a hard session, be sure to get 25-30g of protein within 20 minutes of finishing. I take an eBoost shake to the track or a long bike ride so it’s ready as soon as I’m done. Then, within an hour, I get a good breakfast, usually featuring oatmeal and eggs.
