When it comes to healthy eating, extolling its virtues to fitness enthusiasts is a case of preaching to the choir. Every single individual with an interest in staying healthy knows that exercise alone is not enough, so we won’t insult your intelligence by explaining it to you again.
What we’re going to do instead is look at a particular type of superfood: fish. Tasty, versatile, and filled with lots of fantastic vitamins and minerals, it makes a great addition to a balanced diet, but some types are better than others.
So, interested in getting the biggest possible benefit from fish dishes? Then here are four varieties to incorporate into your daily meal plans…
Sablefish
Containing 5.8 grams of protein per ounce, sablefish is great for building lean muscle. Also known as black cod, this tasty treat hails from the deep waters of the North Pacific, and is exceptionally high in healthy omega-3 fats. Eating it not only has the benefit of decreasing inflammation associated with certain types of exercise, like weight training, but also acts as an anabolic agent in the body, activating muscle protein synthesis. It can be served either steamed, boiled, baked, or seared, and is especially delicious dressed with salsa and mixed with leaves.
Rainbow trout
We’ve always loved salmon, especially served in teppanyaki form, but it can be expensive. Luckily, rainbow trout is a great and slightly more economical alternative. Delicately flavoured and sweet, it contains an abundance of essential amino acids, which are needed to accommodate the repair and growth of lean body mass. Not content to stop there, it also provides plenty of omega-3 fats, which are really important for heart health, as well as B vitamin niacin, which helps to convert food into usable energy. Our favourite way to eat it is roasted, with a sprinkle of salt and pepper for added tastiness. If you want to experiment further, try stuffing it with aromatics like herbs or lemon slices and cooking it on the grill.
Prawns
Although they might not strike you as the most obvious type of superfood, prawns make a great addition to diets, whether you take your inspiration from Japanese cuisine and eat them yaki udon style or incorporate them into a salad. Good for the heart, bones, muscles, skin, and even your energy levels, they have a list of health benefits as long as your arm and are versatile enough to eat every day of the week. We can’t extol their virtues enough!
Canned sardines
Containing a whopping 6.9 grams of protein per ounce, canned sardines offer incontrovertible proof that good things really do come in small packages. Meaty, flavoursome, and filled with impressive amounts of omega-3 fats, protein, and vitamin D, they’re the ideal dietary addition for gym bunnies everywhere. A word of advice before you eat them though: with Greek, Moroccan, and Spanish populations heavily overfished, it’s always best to select their North American cousins if you can.
Isn’t it time to start making some fish-focused meal plans?
