The health benefits of the banana and milk(yay or nay)

[Kev07]

The banana has become a big part of my diet recently for several reasons.

1. bananas are yummy.
2. bananas are very convenient, and quick to eat.
3. potassium prevents cramps (or so i hear)
4. since bananas are convenient and quick, i use them to keep up my metabolism in between meals.
5. there are always bananas lying around my house.

So i'll usually go through anywhere between 2-4 bananas a day.

my goals are basically to just cut off whatever fat i have left on me (i'm about 170 pounds, 5'9) and build up some bulk. I'm training my body like so

sunday: not really sure what i want to do here yet, the past one i just did random work outs.
monday: chest/tricep
wedesnday: legs, mainly squats, and some calf work outs. forearms, and shoulders.
thursday - bicep/back


also, i don't have any protein shakes or whey or anything, so i just try to eat as much meat as i can during my meals. As a substitute for my lack of protein snacks, i usually drink a bottle of chocolate or strawberry milk before or after my workouts. they have around 28% of daily protein (i think that's around 17 grams or somethign not sure.) my mom brings these home from work so it's no big deal.

comments/changes/approvements appreciated!

 

[RedPill]

I make the following drink frequently, and it never gets old:

16 oz skim milk
3 scoops vanilla flavored whey
1 banana
3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
1.5 cups oats

Mixed in the blender it tastes great and packs massive amounts of nutrients in a very short amount of time, and it's also very cost effective since all the ingredients can be bought in bulk. I try to reserve this for right after a workout because otherwise it's hard to finish. Outside of this though I don't drink milk.

 

[comic_relief]

Bananas are really FRIGGEN yummy.

I go through eight a day.

comic_relief

 

[BluEyes]

I guess I'll be the one to throw the scientific b.s. out there this time...


Banana's are medium-high on the Glycemic Index(ill get to that in a sec), and so they should really only be eaten DURING an extended period of aerobic performance, or right after a workout. You'll commonly see athletes eat afew bites of a banana in between whatever it is they do.

the glycemic index is essentially a measurement of how quickly your blood sugar rises after eating the food. Boiled down to bare facts, if your blood sugar levels rise too quickly, your insulin levels shoot north. Fat loss can't occur when your insulin levels are high. period.

the lower the glycemic index, the better the food is for fat loss...The higher the GI, the worse it is for losing that belly. Generally, I'd have a banana in the morning, or right after a workout, or during an athletic performance.

Here's a little list of fruits, and how good they are(GI):

Apples - GI = Low -- anytime
Oranges - GI = Low -- anytime
Grapefruit - GI = Low --anytime
Cherries - GI = Low --anytime
Pears - GI = Low-medium --anytime
Bananas - GI = Medium-high --postworkout
Lemons - GI = Very Low --anytime
Cantaloupe - GI = High --postworkout
Strawberries - GI = Low --anytime
Apricots - GI = Medium --postworkout
Grapes - GI = Low --anytime
Mango - GI = Medium --postworkout
Papaya - GI = Medium --postworkout

You're only really supposed to have 1 serving of fruit per day, for all those health nuts out there... I usually have an apple or something. But yeah...There it is!

 

[Mjazz]

Yes the plain banana and whole milk shake is my staple post workout, I dont know what the GI ends up being, but I think the milk and banana even it out

 

[Skilla_Staz]

You don't "even out" sugars...the simple will digest quickly, no matter if you mix them with complexes or not...

I think thats what you meant...

 

[Kev07]

what if you eat a very unripe banana, i heard that it has less sugars


and how about some more on milk, i keep hearing back and fortyh stuff between milk when i was at athleteforums.com

also, any comments on my workout routine?

thanks

 

[blinkwatt]

You can eat whatever sugar you want up until 5-7 hours before you sleep if you want to lose fat. After that,I would only suggest taking in sugar from milk, it's a very small amount and your body digest it quickly.

 

[wolf116]

I make the following drink frequently, and it never gets old:

16 oz skim milk
3 scoops vanilla flavored whey
1 banana
3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
1.5 cups oats

Mixed in the blender it tastes great and packs massive amounts of nutrients in a very short amount of time, and it's also very cost effective since all the ingredients can be bought in bulk. I try to reserve this for right after a workout because otherwise it's hard to finish. Outside of this though I don't drink milk.

I tried this and the oats don't blend. they just go to the bottom and I have to eat them with a spoon.

 

[RedPill]

I tried this and the oats don't blend. they just go to the bottom and I have to eat them with a spoon.

You need a more powerful blender. When I do it they are pulverized and absorbed by the liquid, making a thick shake.

 

[danno1]

that sounds good, too bad my blender is weak S***

 

[Mjazz]

Wait so what your saying skilla is that there is that combining high gi and low gi foods will not even out the overall gi of the meal? Are you sure?

 

[mrRuckus]

You don't "even out" sugars...the simple will digest quickly, no matter if you mix them with complexes or not...

I think thats what you meant...

I don't think it will even it out but mixing them together will cause the simple to digest slower (lowers the gi)

 

[mrRuckus]

that sounds good, too bad my blender is weak S***

use a coffee grinder type thing. food processor... i got one to grind both oats and flaxseeds.

 

[Kev07]

thanks a lot.

how about

sunday: forearm /shoulders (traps maybe?)
monday:tricep/chest
wedesnday: legs
thursday: bicep/back

i'll probably do my abs twice a week with an incline bench+medicine ball. i also jog for 25 minutes after my workouts (so 4 times aweek).

i want to put my bicep/back on thursday so i can have some upper body recovery time between the 2 main workouts chest/tricep and bicep/back