You can’t get to your destination without putting gas in your tank.

I feel little has been said about nutrition in the cosplay community.

It’s all about eating less and working out more. My hardest struggle was my increased appetite from working out. I couldn’t figure out why having a subway sandwich after going to the gym for 2 hours was getting me nowhere. I just didn’t understand it was a numbers game at that point. I was putting more in that what I was taking out.

You can count calories, but those calories you eat have to be nutritious and healthy. Say you are eating 1600 calories a day, those calories could technically be all Twinkies. Those Twinkies are not giving your body the proper nutrition to fuel properly. Instead fill it with healthy foods. As my title says, you can’t get to your destination without putting gas in your tank. You wouldn’t dump oil into your gas tank and expect it to run efficiently. Now I know it’s a silly comparison and we aren’t cars, but if you don’t maintain your body like your car it is only a matter of time till it breaks down. We all know this but why is it so hard to follow? The answer to that question is up to the individual. Why did I overeat and become overweight? I really just sought comfort in food and being a stressed out college student that freshman 15 turned into a freshman 50. I really did gain 50 lbs my first year in college. That said, it took me years of yo-yo dieting and working out to finally get control and find out what worked for me. Regardless of what exercise routing works for you…. Nutrition and an emphasis on clean eating is critical. It’s a must. There is no way around it.

So I’m going to give advice to you on what to do when it comes to those hunger pains and carvings you get right after you work out.

What I recommend (and other heath professionals and nutritionist have told me):
Have a small snack with natural sugars and a tall glass of water about an hour before working out (fruit,granola bar, yogurt are some examples), during your workout keep hydrated, and after your workout have a full glass of water and a snack. Eat before and after lightly. Simple as that. Starving yourself and working out is just telling your brain to store the reserves. Ratio the fat, because who know how long this battle will be! You might not feel hungry, but on a nice balanced diet you should really not wait till you feel like your starving to eat. Eating throughout the day isn’t so hard. I also work rotating shift work every week, so no excuses! 😀 If I can do it you can too!

Oh and don’t forget your protein! 😀 Protein acts as the building blocks of muscles, the stronger your muscles are, the more your body burns fat in order to maintain that muscle.

I attached a simple graphic as a reminder. 😀

Also, don’t fear it, cook at home! You’ll save a little money, and learn some real life skills. Keep track of everything you eat and see how much you are putting into the tank. We gain weight because we are eating more than we need to. It’s simple eat less and workout. Just working out and not watching what you eat is not healthy.

Since you are looking to be on the right food track, start a food diary! I highly recommend the app MyFitnessPal. If you don’t have a smartphone, and you are reading this you have a computer. So go check it out you can also update it online! But If you do have the app it’s even easier because there is a built in UPC label scanner which will automatically grab the exact item from it’s database. You can also add your friends and help motivate each other.

I plan on doing a video review of the app in the near future. 😀 In the meantime go check it out! 😀

Well I could go on for hours about this stuff, and I need to get my ZZZZZ’s in. Have a great night and thanks for taking the time out to read my blog. Hey if you’d like to support me please feel free to share my blog with friends.

Once again, thank you for your time,

Liz (Leaping Lizard Cosplay)