That all-or-nothing philosophy may help explain their success. Alex Honnold is perhaps the most successful and popular climber in the world at the moment. Anton Krupicka has won countless major ultrarunning races, and Jimmy Chin is a success across many disciplines – he is a climber, photographer and filmmaker with more than one million followers on Instagram.

Pursuing Passion at All Cost

When Alex Honnold first started climbing, he wasn’t the sponsored, world-famous climber he is now. He was simply obsessed with climbing and wanted to do it every day. The only way to be able to do this was to live as a “dirtbag.”

This might seem like an odd way to describe this lifestyle. But a dirtbag is defined by the Urban Dictionary as “a person who is committed to a given (usually extreme) lifestyle to the point of abandoning employment and other societal norms in order to pursue said lifestyle,” which is an accurate description. By this definition, dirtbags live the way the do not because they enjoy it, but because they are pursuing a dream. They are willing to live in poverty, without any luxuries such as TV and warm water, in order to pursue their passion.

After a race or competition, we often hear athletes say, “I gave everything I had.” In a way these athletes are truly giving everything they have because they are willing to commit fully, not only during training and races or expeditions, but in life. They give away everything they had or could have had so that they can live their dream. There is no compromise.

There is something special about that commitment. I’m sure many people working behind a desk would, in theory, love to quit all their responsibilities and live their dream. But most people are not willing to leave everything behind, because we are used to our luxury. Or maybe you have inescapable responsibilities and a family.

The Realities of Pursuing Your Passion

Perhaps that’s why these athletes are so popular. They are living the life that we would like to live, whether it is climbing kayaking, surfing, or skiing every day. When we follow these athletes on social media or read articles about them, we get a feel for what it’s like to live their life. It’s an exhilarating concept. You wake up and drive anywhere you want to go. Whether you want to climb a new mountain, find a new trail to run on, or find the perfect spot to surf, the possibilities are endless.

“It may seem appealing to live on the road, but the trunk of a car is far from a five-star hotel room.”

Why not take it a step further and get a feel for what it’s like to live on the road yourself?  Sleeping in a car is the most inexpensive way to travel. You don’t need a fancy van. Any car can be converted into a mobile house. This van life allows you to travel to anywhere and sleep wherever you want. It brings you a sensation of freedom that most people only dream about.

However, the realities of this type of lifestyle need to be considered. It may seem appealing to live on the road, but the trunk of a car is far from a five-star hotel room. It gets warm on summer days and cold in the winter. You also need to limit the amount of clothes and gear you take, which may be difficult if you are a triathlete or climber and need to bring along your equipment.

Try It for Yourself

If you want to give this van-life lifestyle a try for a weekend or even longer, here are some tips that may help make your experience better:

• Park your car somewhere quiet, with few cars or people passing by.
• Bring ear plugs and an eye mask.
• Bring a good foldable mattress rather than the small inflatable mattresses used for camping.
• Park your car close to an establishment with a restroom. If you are in complete wilderness, bring paper towels and baby wipes.
• Always have a headlamp close to you if you need to get out of your “bed” in the middle of the night.
• Pack all your equipment and your training clothes separately from your casual clothing. You don’t want all the dirt, mud, and sweat to transfer to your jeans and t-shirts.
• Always keep non-perishable food in your car. For instance, I always have rice, cans of beans, dried fruits, dried edamame, and nuts.
• Upload eBooks and podcasts to your phone for entertainment.
• Bring a GoPro, camera, charger for your phone, and other equipment.
• Buy and bring a gas stove. You’ll use it to cook meals and prepare coffee and tea, especially when it’s cold and you’ve spent all day exercising outdoors.

Give it a go for a weekend, and you’ll start to understand the freedom this lifestyle provides and the sacrifices it entails. Here is a video of me as a vegan pro triathlete training, sleeping, and eating out of my car for a weekend. Post your experiences to comments!

You’ll also enjoy:

• What to Pack and How to Train While Traveling
• How to Eat Healthy and Train Hard on the Road
• How Sleep Deprivation Affects Athletic Performance
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Roughing It: Sacrifice in Pursuit of Passion appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Everything you post on social media either adds value to your brand or detracts from it. This is why it is important to think twice before posting. Anything stupid you say can decrease the value and the credibility of your brand.

Here are some smart ways to use social media to build your brand well, and hopefully lead to a sponsorship.

Customising for Social Media Platforms

Gary Vaynerchuk emphasises the context of each social media outlet (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others) and believes too many people use social media as a way to simply distribute content. Instead of using social media to attract people to your blog or website, post different content on each platform that is interesting and shareable.

For instance, on Twitter, instead of simply copy and pasting the link to your new YouTube video, include a quote from your video. On Facebook, instead of posting the video, make a graphic with all the important information from the video. People are much more likely to retweet an interesting quote than a link to a YouTube video.

There is so much content on social media that people don’t take time to click on a YouTube link on Twitter or read a long piece of text on Facebook. Most people scroll quickly through the feed on mobile devices. If you don’t create interesting, catchy, shareable content, you’ll just be one more wave in the social media sea. Furthermore, posting the same picture or quote in all your social media can be repetitive and counterproductive.

Keep Up With Trends

It is important to be active on as many social media platforms as possible. Learn to follow the trends and be active in the social media platform that is most important at the moment. Facebook was popular a few years ago, but now other platforms like Snapchat and Vine are taking over.

Devote the most time to the social media platform that fits your brand and your sport the best. For instance, if you are a freestyle skier, upload plenty of YouTube videos. People will want to see your jumps and tricks in action and are likely to share the videos. If you are a good photographer and travel often for competitions and training camps, put more emphasis on Instagram.

Create Your Signature Move

Think about using a hashtag that represents your brand that you can use for every post. Consider it your signature move. In real life, an athlete might perform a unique movement after every race or competition. Olympic champion Mo Farah makes an “M” with his arms over his head after each race, and it has become his signature move. Usain Bolt points to the sky with both his arms like a lightning bolt. A hashtag ties into the bigger question of what differentiates you from other athletes. Why should a brand sponsor you instead of someone else?

“Start promoting a brand even if the company doesn’t sponsor you.If the brand notices you talking about them on social media and in interviews, they will contact you instead of you having to contact them.”

There are many ways to stand out from the crowd. For instance, ultra-runner Anton Krupicka lives a minimalist life and often sleeps in his car so he can train wherever he wants. He has a long beard, almost always runs without a shirt, and never brings a water bottle, food, or any gear – even for three-hour run workouts. His identity and brand is so well established that even though he hasn’t been racing (or winning) for many months due to injuries, he still attracts a lot of media and public attention. This is a sponsor’s dream.

The Benefit of Free Content

Gary Vaynerchuk believes in the Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook way of marketing. In fact, it’s the name of his last book. He uses a boxing metaphor to explain that people should give, give, give (jab) to their audience in order to then ask (hook) and get something back from them.

This might look like uploading a library of free training videos on YouTube before asking your fan base to buy your book. The more free content you give your fans, the more you can ask them to give back. And you don’t necessarily have to have something to sell. Your “hook” could be asking your fans to subscribe to your channel and share your social media posts so you can continue to grow your brand.

This principle also applies to athletes who want to find a new sponsor. Start promoting a brand even if the company doesn’t sponsor you. If the brand notices you talking about them on social media and in interviews, they will contact you instead of you having to contact them. You have better chances of landing a good contract if the company contacts you instead of the other way around.

Good luck, and let me know how you get on!

You’ll also enjoy:

• 4 Ways to Make Better Connections With Friends, Clients, and Yourself
• Social Media and Fitness: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• The 5 Best Fitness Apps
• New on Breaking Muscle UK Today

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Athletes: How to Build Your Brand and Get Sponsored appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Everything you post on social media either adds value to your brand or detracts from it. This is why it is important to think twice before posting. Anything stupid you say can decrease the value and the credibility of your brand.

Here are some smart ways to use social media to build your brand well, and hopefully lead to a sponsorship.

Customizing for Social Media Platforms

Gary Vaynerchuk emphasizes the context of each social media outlet (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and others) and believes too many people use social media as a way to simply distribute content. Instead of using social media to attract people to your blog or website, post different content on each platform that is interesting and shareable.

For instance, on Twitter, instead of simply copy and pasting the link to your new YouTube video, include a quote from your video. On Facebook, instead of posting the video, make a graphic with all the important information from the video. People are much more likely to retweet an interesting quote than a link to a YouTube video.

There is so much content on social media that people don’t take time to click on a YouTube link on Twitter or read a long piece of text on Facebook. Most people scroll quickly through the feed on mobile devices. If you don’t create interesting, catchy, shareable content, you’ll just be one more wave in the social media sea. Furthermore, posting the same picture or quote in all your social media can be repetitive and counterproductive.

Keep Up With Trends

It is important to be active on as many social media platforms as possible. Learn to follow the trends and be active in the social media platform that is most important at the moment. Facebook was popular a few years ago, but now other platforms like Snapchat and Vine are taking over.

Devote the most time to the social media platform that fits your brand and your sport the best. For instance, if you are a freestyle skier, upload plenty of YouTube videos. People will want to see your jumps and tricks in action and are likely to share the videos. If you are a good photographer and travel often for competitions and training camps, put more emphasis on Instagram.

Create Your Signature Move

Think about using a hashtag that represents your brand that you can use for every post. Consider it your signature move. In real life, an athlete might perform a unique movement after every race or competition. Olympic champion Mo Farah makes an “M” with his arms over his head after each race, and it has become his signature move. Usain Bolt points to the sky with both his arms like a lightning bolt. A hashtag ties into the bigger question of what differentiates you from other athletes. Why should a brand sponsor you instead of someone else?

“Start promoting a brand even if the company doesn’t sponsor you. If the brand notices you talking about them on social media and in interviews, they will contact you instead of you having to contact them.”

There are many ways to stand out from the crowd. For instance, ultra-runner Anton Krupicka lives a minimalist life and often sleeps in his car so he can train wherever he wants. He has a long beard, almost always runs without a shirt, and never brings a water bottle, food, or any gear – even for three-hour run workouts. His identity and brand is so well established that even though he hasn’t been racing (or winning) for many months due to injuries, he still attracts a lot of media and public attention. This is a sponsor’s dream.

The Benefit of Free Content

Gary Vaynerchuk believes in the Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook way of marketing. In fact, it’s the name of his last book. He uses a boxing metaphor to explain that people should give, give, give (jab) to their audience in order to then ask (hook) and get something back from them.

This might look like uploading a library of free training videos on YouTube before asking your fan base to buy your book. The more free content you give your fans, the more you can ask them to give back. And you don’t necessarily have to have something to sell. Your “hook” could be asking your fans to subscribe to your channel and share your social media posts so you can continue to grow your brand.

This principle also applies to athletes who want to find a new sponsor. Start promoting a brand even if the company doesn’t sponsor you. If the brand notices you talking about them on social media and in interviews, they will contact you instead of you having to contact them. You have better chances of landing a good contract if the company contacts you instead of the other way around.

Good luck, and let me know how you get on!

You’ll also enjoy:

• How to Craft a Winning Sponsorship Proposal
• Money Is Not an Obstacle: The Simple Path to Sponsorship
• The 5 Best Fitness Apps
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Get Sponsored: How to Build a Brand as an Athlete appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

7 Swimming Tips That Count

1. Enter the Water With Your Fingers First

Your hand should cut through the water first and then your elbow should follow. Many people don’t bend their arm enough. This means the arm is straight when it enters the water, and therefore the hand and elbow enter the water at the same time. When your hand is straight, you are not able to pull the water efficiently.

2. Reach as Far as You Can With Your Arm

When your hand enters the water, you need to glide, stretch, and reach as far as you can. You can gain a few inches for every stroke, which would make a huge difference over the course of a swimming race or triathlon.

3. Place Your Hand in the Center

Your hand should not cross the centerline and it should not be too much to the outside. In fact, it should be right in line with your shoulder. If your hand crosses the centerline, you will zigzag from left to right.

4. Rotate Your Body

By rotating your body, you can reach much farther with your hands and you can use a lot more strength when pulling the water. By rotating, instead of only using your shoulder, you also use your lats muscles, pectorals, and core. It will also prevent many shoulder injuries.

“No matter how strong and fit you are, if you don’t have the proper technique, then you won’t go fast.”

5. Keep Your Hand Loose

By keeping your hand loose, you maximize the area your hand takes in the water. Don’t keep your fingers tightly pressed together because your arm will be contracted and you will lose energy.

6. Raise Your Elbows High

By raising your elbows high, your hands will enter the water with the proper angle and you will be able to pull water efficiently because your entire forearm will pull water. This also reduces the drag in the water.

7. Modify Your Kicking Cadence Depending on the Distance

For a sprint, such as 50m, 100m, or 200m, you should kick as much as you can because the event is short and you don’t need to manage your energy. For a longer event, like a 5km or 10km open water swim or an Ironman, you should kick less because you need to conserve energy. In those cases, keep a two-beat kick, which means you do one kick for every stroke.

Tips for Swimming in Open Water

If you are swimming in open water like in a triathlon, lift your head slightly but not too much to sight for the buoys. Only your eyes should be out of the water when you sight, not your mouth. After sighting, turn your head to the side to breathe. Depending if the water is choppy and on the size of the buoys, you can sight at every three to twelve strokes. In a calm lake, you can sight less often, but in choppy water, you should sight more frequently.

“Try to fix something in front of you and make sure your head stays still and doesn’t move from left to right.”

You can practice sighting by swimming laps keeping your head out of the water. Your head should stay still and your neck should be relaxed and not contracted. Try to fix something in front of you and make sure your head stays still and doesn’t move from left to right.

You need to be able to breathe on both sides so you are able to adapt to any conditions. For example, if the waves are on your left, you should breathe on your right, but if someone is swimming on your right, you should breathe on your left so you don’t swallow a lot of water.

Here’s a video describing these few tips:

Additional Exercises to Improve Your Efficiency

1. Distance per stroke – Try to do as few strokes as possible for one length of the pool. Try to lower your number of strokes for one length every time you do this exercise.
2. High cadence swimming – Try to move your arms quickly. It is important to be efficient when you swim, but you also need to get used to moving your arms quickly so you can swim fast.
3. Swimming with a snorkel – When you swim with a snorkel, your can head remain still so you can see how your arms enter the water. Notice if your hands cross the centerline and if your fingers enter the water at the right angle.
4. Swimming with a band on your feet – You can use an old bike tube, cut it and make a knot. It is similar to swimming with a pull buoy, but contrary to the pull buoy, which provides you floatability, your legs sink when you swim with a band. So, you have to strengthen your core to keep your legs still and you need to be efficient when pulling the water. You can start by swimming with a pull buoy and a band and when you feel comfortable, try without the pull.
5. Do kick sets – By doing kicking sets you will become more efficient and stronger. You can use a board to work on your core strength or you can use half a board or a pull. You can also kick without anything by kicking on your back, on your sides, or on your belly (by lifting your head when you need to breathe).

More like this:

• 3 Drills for Stronger and Smoother Open Water Swimming
• Avoid These 4 Mistakes for Better Freestyle Swimming
• 3 No-Nonsense Ways to Build Fitness Through Swimming
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post 7 Essential Swimming Tips for Even the Strongest Athletes appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

When it comes to sugar content, soft drinks and juice really aren’t that different.

Indeed, daily soft drink consumers (people who consume one or two cans per day or more) have a 26 % greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes when compared to people who rarely consume soft drinks.¹ It has also been shown that consuming on average one can of a sugary beverage per day increases the risk of having a heart attack by 20%.²

However, fruit juices also contain high amounts of sugar. A twelve-ounce (350 mL) Coca Cola contains 140 calories and 40 grams of sugar while the same amount of apple juice contains 165 calories and 39 grams of sugar.

One may argue that fruit juices contain vitamins and antioxidants, which is true – but they contain much less than un-juiced fruit. During processing fruit juices lose some of their nutritional value. Furthermore, because fruit juices contain no fiber, they do not provide a sensation of satiety compared to whole fruits.

What About Athletes?

Because athletes consume a lot of calories and need a quick and easy-to-digest source of carbohydrates when they workout, it is okay for them to consume fruit juices occasionally. But the timing of when you consume that glass of fruit juice is important.

“Make sure to dilute the dilute the juice with water and add a pinch of salt to replace the electrolytes lost during your training.”

If you are working out in the morning and want a quick source of energy, you could drink a glass of juice. But if you are training a few hours or more after breakfast, then you should instead consume whole fruits, such as a banana, an apple, or grapes. The fiber content of whole fruit will help regulate your blood sugar level so you will have energy for a longer period of time and won’t experience a sudden drop.

Timing is important if you’re going to drink juice to support your workouts.

Also, instead of drinking a sports or soft drink during a long bike ride or run, you could drink a little bit of fruit juice. A good drink for during exercise should contain between six to eight percent of carbohydrates.³

Make sure to dilute the juice with water and add a pinch of salt to replace the electrolytes lost during your training. If you drink a non-diluted fruit juice while working out, it won’t be digested properly and you may experience gastrointestinal issues.

The Good Stuff

Even though fruit juices contain as much sugar and calories as soft drinks and they are not really much more nutritious, fruit juices don’t contain the many unhealthy ingredients that soft drinks can:

• Soft drinks contain high levels of phosphate and consuming more phosphate than calcium may negatively impact the health of your bones.⁴
• Also, phosphoric acid is detrimental for the health of the teeth.
• Most soft drinks contain artificial flavors and color as well as preservatives.

Furthermore, the amount of soft drinks consumed is typically inversely related to the amount of milk a person consumes. Therefore, a person who drinks soft drinks regularly may be calcium deficient. This point is crucial for children and adolescents because their bones are still being built.

Is Juicing Okay?

Depending on what you are juicing and how you are doing it, juicing at home can be healthy. For instance, freshly squeezed orange juice contains more vitamins and antioxidants than the typical orange juice bought at the supermarket – and it tastes a lot better. But it still doesn’t contain the fiber of whole fruit and does contain as much sugar and calories.

“Juicing at home is a great way to save money because beet juices, as well as carrots juices, are really expensive at the supermarket.”

On the other hand, if you blend fruits along with leafy greens like kale or spinach and vegetables such as carrots, you obtain a nutrient-dense juice that also contains fiber. Juicing kale, carrots, and beets is a great way to easily consume more vegetables. And beets are also known to improve performance due to the presence of nitrates. Juicing at home is a great way to save money because beet juices, as well as carrots juices, are really expensive at the supermarket.

Juicing makes it easy to consume more vegetables.

If you want to buy a juicer you can choose between a centrifugal juice extractor and cold press juicer, also known as a masticating juicer. A cold press juicer produces less heat and therefore the nutrients in the fruits and vegetables stay more intact. However, it is more expensive.

If you want to blend (as opposed to juice) your fruits and vegetables and keep all the fiber, then just buy a really good blender, such as a Vitamix. You will obtain a denser texture and it is much more satiating.

Do you have any favorite vegetable and juice combos that you use? If so, please post them to the comments below.

More Like This:

• 10 Day Juice Fast: Is Juicing Good for You?
• Getting Started With Juicing: What You Need to Know
• Cleanses, Detoxes, and Juice Fasts: Do They Work?
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

References:

1. Malik VS, Popkin BM, Bray GA, Despres JP, Willett WC, Hu FB. Sugar-sweetened beverages and risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis, Diabetes Care. 33:2477-83, 2013.

2. de Koning L, Malik VS, Kellogg MD, Rimm EB, Willett WC, Hu FB. Sweetened beverage consumption, incident coronary heart disease, and biomarkers of risk in men. Circulation. 125:1735-41, S1, 2012.

3. Eberle, Suzanne. Endurance Sports Nutrition. Human Kinetics. 2007

4. Harvard School of Public Health. “Soft drinks and disease.” Accessed August 9th, 2015.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Are Fruit Juices as Bad as Soft Drinks? appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

1. Bananas

Bananas are easy to carry in a bag or even in a cycling jersey. Most cyclists eat bananas during races because they race for up to six to seven hours on many consecutive days and get tired of eating bars and gels.

Bananas are a good source of carbohydrates and potassium and are easy to digest, especially during a long exercise at moderate intensity, such as a long ride. However, bananas contain fiber and may be harder to digest during a long run. If you want to bring bananas during a hike lasting many days it is recommended to make banana chips using a dehydrator.

2. Nuts and Seeds

When you exercise for a long period of time at a low intensity, you burn mostly fat. In addition, as you improve and become fitter, you are able to burn fat more easily. Therefore, nuts and seeds are a great source of energy during long trainings or excursions. You can either bring whole nuts and seeds in a bag or bring a nut-butter “gel” such as TrailButter or Pocketfuel.

3. Dried Fruits

As mentioned, dried bananas are a great snack, but you can also make or buy dried apples, kiwis, pears, and all sorts of other fruits. If you decide to buy dried fruits, make sure the product is not fried and that it doesn’t contain preservatives or added sugar.

“For a snack with more fat and protein, you can stuff the dates with peanut butter or almond butter.”

If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can still easily make apples chips using an oven preheated at 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix a ½ tablespoon of sugar with a ½ tablespoon of cinnamon and cook for 45 minutes to one hour.

Dates are also great because they are super sweet and nutritive. For a snack with more fat and protein, you can stuff the dates with peanut butter or almond butter.

4. Baked Potato

After you’ve eaten gels, bars, and fruits for hours and hours, it’s great to have a savory snack such as a baked potato. Simply cook it in the oven or in the microwave, add salt, and wrap it in foil. Sweet potatoes are a great option because they are a good source of vitamin A and potassium. And don’t skip the salt, as it will replenish the electrolytes lost during the exercise.

5. Homemade Gel

You can also make your own gel and put it in a small squeeze bottle. Throw some dates, honey, or maple syrup with some chia seeds or nut butter and a pinch of salt in a blender and you are good to go.

6. Datorade

If you prefer to consume calories by drinking, you should dry a datorade, which is a healthier, homemade version of a Gatorade. You only need dates, water, a pinch of salt, and spices such as cinnamon or cocoa powder. You can also add bananas.

7. Maple Syrup

Compared to high fructose corn syrup, honey, brown sugar, and white sugar, organic maple syrup is much more natural and nutritious. It contains more riboflavin, thiamine, manganese, zinc, magnesium, calcium, iron, selenium and potassium.

You can either buy maple water and drink it or dilute maple syrup with water. Maple water is more expensive but it is more nutritious because it is not heated. You can also buy maple syrup gels from the company Untapped. It is a company from Vermont founded by professional cyclist Ted King.

8. Healthier Bars and Gels

If you absolutely want to bring bars and gels, there are many healthy options:

• Kronobars are vegan, gluten-free, and made without added sugars.
• If you really like meat, Epic bars are a great option. You have the choice of bison, turkey, beef, or lamb. They are paleo friendly, gluten-free, and low in sugar, and the animals sourced are grass-fed.
• If you are planning a long hike, you should try Larabars because they contain a lot of healthy fat. One bar contains 10 grams of fat, 4 grams of protein, and 24 grams of carbohydrates. Because it is high in fat, it will give you energy for a long period of time.
• If you are looking for a healthier gel, hüma is a great option. It is made from real fruits and chia seeds. Chia is a good source of fiber and modulates sugar absorption. Therefore, you will not have a sugar peak followed by a big drop in your energy level.

8. Rice Cakes

Before a cycling race, the cook (also known as soigneur) of the team prepares many small rice cakes wrapped in foil paper. Rice is great because it is easy to digest and a quick source of energy. Homemade cakes are nutritious and high in carbohydrates, and you can prepare a new type every day. That way you don’t get bored of eating the same bar, and you can even make them salty or sweet.

Here’s Allen Lim’s rice cake recipe. He is well known in the cycling world and has published the book The Feed Zone.

Apple Cinnamon Rice Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups uncooked medium-grain sticky rice (ex. Calrose)
• 3-3.5 cups water
• 2 apples
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• Brown sugar
• Sea salt

Method:

1. Combine rice and water in a rice cooker or cook the rice on a pot.
2. Peel, core and dice the apples.
3. Mix the apples with cinnamon, brown sugar and salt.
4. Combine the rice with the apples.
5. Press the mixture into an 8-9 inch square pan to about 1 ½ inch thickness.
6. Cut to make 10 rice cakes.
7. Wrap in foil paper.

Allen Lim demonstrates how to wrap your rice cakes before you take them on the road.

Pretzel

If you are looking for a salty food because you have been eating energy bars all day, pretzels are a good option. They contain a little bit of fat but much less than chips and contain a lot less saturated fat. They’re a good source of sodium and carbohydrates, and pretzels contain more protein than chips, too.

Homemade Energy Bar

Energy bars are easy to make at home and you can make a big batch and freeze most of it. Homemade energy bars often contain dates because they are a good source of carbohydrates and help keep the bar together. Nuts, seeds, and nut butter are also part of most homemade bars because of their fat and protein content.

You can easily tweak your recipe by adding new spices, dark chocolate, or different types of nuts and seeds. You can also alternate the type of sugar, for instance using stevia or coconut sugar, as well as change up the type of flour.

Nutty, Fruity, and Sexy Bar

Ingredients:

• 95g chopped walnuts
• 2 ripe bananas
• 120ml vegetable oil
• 200g granulated sugar or coconut sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 230g rolled oats
• 95g flour or gluten-free flour
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 90g dried cranberries

Method:

1. Preheat the oven at 355°F.
2. Toast the walnuts on the oven for 8 minutes or on a pan.
3. Mix the bananas, the oil, the sugar and the vanilla in a bowl.
4. Add the dried ingredients.
5. Bake for 25-30 minutes in a 20cm x 20cm baking tray.

What are your favorite real-food snacks to fuel long workouts? Share in the comments below.

More Like This:

• Eat for Endurance: 4 Things Pros Do
• Eating to Recover: How and What to Eat Post Workout
• 8 Natural Ways to Fuel Your Energy Level Through the Day
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post 11 Simple Ways to Fuel Your Body With Real Food appeared first on Breaking Muscle.