For those of us who enjoy exercising regularly, a new study suggests that adding almonds to our diets might be the perfect way to aid muscle recovery. A randomized control trial published in Frontiers in Nutrition found that participants who ate 57g of almonds each day had higher levels of 12,13-dihydroxy-9Z-octadecenoic acid or 12,13-DiHOME found in their blood immediately after an intense workout session than those who didn’t eat almonds. This oxylipin is synthesized from linoleic acid by brown fat tissue and has beneficial effects on both metabolic health and energy regulation. Let’s take a closer look at this study and its findings.
The Study and Its Findings; the study involved 54 female and male “weekend warriors” (people who exercise intensely but only once or twice per week). Half of the participants were randomly assigned to eat 57g of almonds each day for one month while the other half served as controls. On the last day of the study period, all participants completed a 60-minute cycling session at 70% VO2 max intensity followed by a three hours recovery period. During this time, researchers took blood samples from both groups to measure levels of 12,13-DiHOME. They found that participants who had eaten almonds daily had 69% higher levels of 12,13-DiHOME than those in the control group after exercise.
These results suggest that eating almonds daily could be beneficial for people who engage in regular exercise but only occasionally—the so-called “weekend warriors”. It could help them not only improve their performance during exercise but also improve their post-workout recovery process as well.
Exercise is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle, but it can often be accompanied by sore muscles or fatigue afterward. Eating almonds every day might be a simple yet effective way to boost your post-workout recovery process and get back into action quicker! So if you’re looking for a New Year’s resolution that will enhance your performance inside and outside the gym, consider adding some almonds to your diet – you might just find yourself pleasantly surprised with the results!…
Featured image; CHUTTERSNAP
