You can use honey after training. Honey in bodybuilding: myths. Honey in sports, an ideal energy drink

Probably many of you did not know this, but the Greek athletes before the Olympics simply ate honey. Athletes believed that honey “pumped up” them with endurance and strength for future successful performances.

This is not surprising. Scientists have proven that honey contains glucose and fructose, which help the liver produce large amounts of glycogen.

When engaging in intensive training, maintaining optimal level blood sugar. As you know, athletes with a large supply of glycogen and sugar are less tired and show better performance.

A teaspoon of this product contains 22 calories, while the same amount of sugar contains 15. But honey is thousands of times more valuable, because, thanks to an equal ratio of fructose and glucose, it “charges” the brain in a matter of minutes.

Of course, all this refers to real honey, and not bought in a supermarket. If you play sports, I advise you to buy honey directly from manufacturers. In this case, you will have a guarantee that you use quality product, without impurities.

By the way, drinking just one teaspoon of honey before bed will support your brain activity. After all, brain activity does not stop during sleep and requires constant recharge for proper functioning.

Fructose present in honey is stored in the human liver as energy reserves body and nourish the brain of an athlete at night. Thanks to this, sleep is healthy and strong, and when you wake up, you will feel light and cheerful.

For many years, honey has been used as prophylactic with weakened immunity. It should definitely be taken for symptoms such as fatigue, allergies and colds.

The vitamins, microelements, amino acids and bioflavonoids present in honey effectively support immune system. Believe me, just a few spoons of honey a day and your sleep will be strong and healthy, which will also strengthen your immune system.

Many athletes use honey as an excellent diuretic that removes excess water from tissues and joints. This property of honey is especially useful for athletes participating in various competitions.

By the way, I am ready to help my readers from Russia and recommend where you can buy honey in Moscow from the manufacturer. That's all for today. Read!

Honey nectar can be safely called a unique product, which contains the maximum power of nature, filling it with benefits, taste and healing properties. It is amazing that, despite the huge number of myths, honey is used in bodybuilding, sports, weight loss and even diabetes!

Why is honey useful for athletes?

It is possible to talk about the healing qualities of honey nectar for an infinitely long time: it is used to treat and prevent many diseases. The benefits of honey are also rich in vitamins, minerals, micro and macro elements, so honey nectar can be considered an excellent addition to the diet of people involved in professional and amateur sports.
Many are interested in the question, is it harmful or beneficial to use honey nectar during training? So, honey sweetness acts good source energy, which gives strength for training, increasing strength and increasing performance. With the help of honey nectar, you can speed up the recovery process of the body after heavy physical exertion, normalize and improve metabolism, and increase immunity. Using it instead of sugar can also help you lose weight, and taking it with milk before bed can result in sound, restful, and deep sleep.

Permissible norms and how to take honey

Interesting fact! According to the results of studies, when eating 1 g of honey nectar per 1 kg of body, productivity increases by 15%, the body is in good shape, there is a surge of strength and energy.

For best effect, exerted on the body by honey nectar, it is best to take it 1 hour before the start of the workout and about half an hour after it. The type in which the sweetness will be used depends on the preferences of the athlete. Many people just eat it with a spoon, some add it to tea, protein drinks, milk or simply diluted in water. Avid sports fans, professional bodybuilders and athletes recommend eating honey nectar along with bee pollen, which has the ability to improve the beneficial properties of the product.

Of course, there are some restrictions on the intake of honey, which depend directly on the athlete's diet. As a rule, the recommended norm is calculated according to the proportion of 1 gram of nectar per 1 kilogram of mass. However, daily maximum dose should not exceed 200 grams of sweet product.

Nutritionists and trainers united in the opinion that when drying or on a diet, it is better to limit the use of honey. But for muscles, at the stage of mass gain, beekeeping products will be very useful. Its peculiarity is that honey after a workout will be very useful both for the body as a whole and for the expected result. fructose, which in large numbers contained in honey, quickly replenishes glycogen costs, helping to recover.

Important to remember! No matter what diet and training schedule, there should always be water during and after training. You need to drink more than two liters of clean water per day.

Can bodybuilders and people actively involved in sports eat honey? Definitely yes! And then we will describe several good and very healthy recipes, using which you can introduce honey into your diet, positively affecting the body, achieving good set mass, recovery and training and workouts. In fact, there are a huge number of recipes with honey nectar, of which the following can be distinguished, the most popular:

1. Honey-wine tincture with aloe. First you need to prepare the leaves of the plant: cut, wrap in a paper towel and refrigerate for 2-3 days. Then crush and squeeze out the juice. Add 150 grams of the resulting product to 250 grams of honey and 350 ml of red wine. It is recommended to take Cahors. Mix everything thoroughly and put it in a cool dark place for a week. After this period, take the mixture half an hour before meals 3 times a day.
2. Morning porridge with honey nectar. As you know, athletes often have breakfast with cereals and cereals. Adding 1-2 tablespoons of honey will help diversify the taste. Honey can also be eaten with cottage cheese, bread and crackers.
3. Honey with garlic. The secret of this, at first glance, terrible, combination is that both of these ingredients, interacting with each other, allow you to produce growth hormone to a greater extent, as well as raise testosterone levels by 2-3 times. For cooking garlic mixture enough 1 clove of garlic, grated on a fine grater or chopped in a blender, and 1 tablespoon of honey. It is recommended to take a few minutes before bedtime.
4. Ginger honey with dried fruits and cranberries. 200 grams of ginger root should be chopped on a grater or in a blender, add 2 unpeeled lemons to the resulting gruel, continuing to grind in a blender. After that, you can add figs and dried apricots, 100 grams of each ingredient and 1 cup of cranberries. Add 200 grams of honey to the resulting mass and mix well with a spoon until the honey nectar is completely and evenly distributed. You need to take this slurry 1 teaspoon in the morning with tea or other drinks.
5. Honey-nut mix. Such gruel will be an excellent source of energy, since nuts have a high energy value. For such a mixture, you need to use 100 grams of almonds, cashews, pine nuts, 50 grams of anise seeds and 20 grams of black pepper grains. Next, you should grind everything and add 100 grams of honey of any kind.

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Secrets of eternal youth

Bee products have long been famous for their amazing useful qualities, which by their properties cannot be compared with any other food products. In this regard, honey is often called liquid gold, a gift of nature. Below we describe a few interesting recipes, which will help maintain youth and beauty for a longer time. What is the difference between them? Only in the ingredients, but the result will be stunning anyway!

The first option is a decoction of herbs St. John's wort, chamomile, immortelle. Each plant should be mixed together in 100 grams. For the broth itself, you only need 1 tablespoon of chopped herbal mixture and 500 ml of water. When the tea is infused for 20 minutes, strain it and add 1 teaspoon of honey. It is recommended to drink this drink after dinner and breakfast.

The second option is a mixture lemon juice, honey and oil. To prepare it, you need to mix 100 ml of freshly squeezed juice with 200 grams of honey and 50 ml olive oil. It remains only to mix everything very carefully and take 1 teaspoon.


The third option is honey water. To do this, it is enough just in the morning, on an empty stomach, to drink a glass of water. room temperature in which one teaspoon of honey is mixed. Such a drink starts the metabolism, normalizes digestion, tones and restores the body. In such water, you can add a couple of slices of lemon, which will only improve the effect.

Honey orange cocktail

For a charge of vivacity and energy in the morning, it is recommended to drink a tonic cocktail of 2-3 oranges with the addition of sweet and useful ingredient- honey. To prepare it, you need to squeeze the juice from ripe citrus fruits, stir 1 teaspoon of honey in 50 ml of water. Next, pour freshly squeezed juice into honey water and mix well.

Banana milkshake with honey

To prepare this cocktail, you need to take 1-2 bananas and chop them in any convenient way - cut into cubes, grind in a blender, grate or crush with a fork. Next, add 300 ml of milk and 1 tablespoon of honey to the resulting gruel. The resulting mixture must be very well mixed until smooth in a blender or use a mixer.

Honey nut cocktail

To get delicious and incredible healthy cocktail from nuts, they must be thoroughly cleaned and chopped in a blender. Next, the gruel should be diluted with the juice of two citrus fruits: an orange or a grapefruit. It is not recommended to do this with lemon, as it contains too much acid, which can harm the body. 50 grams of honey is added to the mixture and mixed well.

Sweet tooth found an alternative simple carbohydrates: include natural honey in the diet to diversify the diet. Rock paintings, archaeological finds and historical sources brought to us the time of the appearance of honey, the beneficial properties of a natural product. The great Pythagoras lived to old age in sound mind and strong memory due to the constant consumption of honey. Avicenna recommended natural product to keep you young.

Greek historians introduced the descendants to another property of honey: the body of Alexander the Great, who died in Babylon, was mummified - immersed in " white honey that does not melt”, and two years later it was transported to Egypt. The chronicler Pyotr Sumarokov described how the inhabitants of Ceylon kept the meat of slaughtered animals in the heat. They smeared the pieces with honey and sealed them in a hollow. Modern scientists have investigated a natural product by immersing bacteria and microbes in it. They came to the conclusion that honey has bactericidal properties, killing even anaerobes that are not subject to antibiotics.

About the benefits of honey

The working bees worked on collecting nectar, brought it to the hive house, cleaned it of excess pollen in the honey goiter. Next, sucrose is inverted: the bees convert sugar into fructose and glucose. The balance of natural monosaccharides is the basis of natural honey - unique product that has gone through complex phases of fermentation in the bee colony. The product contains the necessary human body macro and micronutrients:

• copper;
• iron;
• silicon;
• potassium;
• calcium;
• sodium;
• phosphorus;
• manganese.

Honey contains organic acids, vitamins, phytoncides. Chemists isolated lipids, amino acids, hydroxymethylfurfural in the composition of the product. The latter is considered a carcinogen, but OMF in fresh honey does not exceed 5 mg per 1 kg of product. At high temperatures storage after 3-5 years, the concentration increases to 250 mg. The same result is obtained if the product is heated above 60 degrees during the day, therefore it is not recommended to “dissolve” the candied product over this time.

Associated with this property myth of harm heated honey: there is an opinion that vitamins are destroyed, OMF accumulates. Consumers are urged not to consume honey with hot milk, tea. Experienced beekeepers and scientists of the Research Center of the Moscow veterinary academy came to the conclusion: enzymes and part of the vitamins are destroyed, releasing metal ions. It is they that provide the biological activity of cells, “turn on” enzymatic processes, regulate chemical processes in the body. For centuries, traditional medicine recipes have offered people boiled honey with drugs, which only benefited a sick person, supported physical form prolong youth.

It has been established that the natural product does not cause an increase in blood sugar. When broken down, it supplies the liver with "released" glycogen, acts as a "fast" source of energy in the morning after getting up. Sports doctors recommend filling dishes with honey before and after strength training for bodybuilders. In the evening before going to bed, milk with honey has a relaxing effect, promotes good sleep through the production of the hormone melatonin. Reduces cholesterol levels diabetes, prevents heart disease, hypertension. "Honey" amino acids are quickly absorbed by the body to restore and build muscle tissue. Bactericidal properties are manifested during the healing of pustules, wounds, infectious diseases respiratory tract. It has a beneficial effect on sperm and eggs, improving sexual function.

This is interesting: in order to make 1 kg of honey, worker bees fly 150 thousand times for sweet nectar. About a million honey plants are flown around by a forager bee in order to make 100 g of honey in the hive. One bee family produces 150 - 200 kg of sweet product per season, 100 kg of them are eaten per year. During the flight, the pickers feed on nectar - a third of the bribe does not reach the hive.

Varieties of honey: which one to choose?

The sweet product differs in color, taste, aroma. The most famous is flower, monofloral or polyfloral: from a flower of one species or a mixture of plants. Honeydew is rare: bees extract it from the secretions of insects that live on leaves, or honeydew, a sweet condensate on plants that forms when temperatures change.

Monofloral varieties of the "magnificent seven":

1. Linden: with a characteristic aroma of tree flowers, light yellow, quickly crystallizes. Effective in the treatment of colds, coughs, sore throats, SARS.
2. Acacia: recognized as one of the best. Light to transparent, with a delicate aroma and mild taste, without honey bitterness, liquid consistency - does not sugar for a long time. ethnoscience recommended for heart disease gastrointestinal tract. Applied topically for eye diseases.
3. Buckwheat: dark in color with tart bitterness. A storehouse of trace elements, iron, copper, zinc predominate. Treats, beriberi, hypertension, rheumatism. Antibacterial properties are used in the treatment of skin diseases inflammatory nature. Restores protein metabolism- Athletes use it during the open carbohydrate-protein window.
4. Sweet clover: white or light amber color, sugars instantly after pumping. Connoisseurs appreciate the bitter taste with hints of vanilla. Treats insomnia, dilates blood vessels, improves metabolism. Relieves pain from bruises and sprains.
5. Heather: rich red-brown color, with pronounced bitterness. Consistency - thick "toffee", slow crystallization. Renders sedative action regulates appetite.
6. Chestnut: thick product dark color with mild taste and late crystallization. Affects the immune system, the gastrointestinal tract.
7. Sainfoin honey from a perennial shrub of the same name, which is also called "hare pea". Thick amber color with a mild taste, after crystallization becomes white. Improves chemical composition blood, the state of the walls of blood vessels, metabolism, activates defensive forces organism.

fly in the ointment

The beneficial properties of the amber product are undeniable, if you follow the measure and do not load the pancreas large doses. In the morning, it is preferable for the body to refuel with a spoonful of porridge with a drop of honey, and not vice versa. Healers advise using no more than 100 grams of the product - 3 tablespoons - per day for honey treatment. Calorie intake - 310 - 320 Kcal. If you do not adhere to physiological doses, dial overweight, there will be problems with the pancreas, the risk of diabetes mellitus 2 degrees.

Honey is absolutely contraindicated for allergy sufferers and children under three years of age. There is one indulgence: you can use acacia honey, which is called "children's" - it does not cause unwanted reactions.

Caution: you may come across poisonous or "drunk honey" - in the southern regions, bees bring nectar from rhododendrons, in which a dangerous glucoside, andromedotoxin, is found. Poisonous substances are also found in the pollen of azalea, laurel, andromeda. Honey based on such nectar causes a person to experience a state similar to severe intoxication: convulsions, vomiting, dizziness. There is evidence of historians how "drunk honey" knocked down a legion of Roman soldiers. At the end of the 19th century, cases of poisoning with "drunk honey" were revealed in Batumi. When analyzing the composition, it was found that the bees brought nectar from laurel trees. But the bees themselves, eating such nectar, feel safe. Connoisseurs advise heating honey delivered from the southern regions - in a water bath to 60 degrees, harmful substances"fly away".

The myth about the dangers of heating honey and the ban on the use of a fragrant product with hot water we have already refuted by research by scientists from the Moscow Academy of Veterinary Medicine and folk recipes decoction of honey with medicinal herbs. An age-old tradition testifies that hot honey does not lose its medicinal properties.

How to take honey?

The nectar product consists of “fast” carbohydrates: fructose and glucose, which means that it is useful for bodybuilders, those who are engaged in fitness, and keep their figure. Recommendations: take half an hour before training and immediately after sports. The mechanism of splitting honey allows you to slowly and evenly "throw" glucose into the blood. The body's response to an energy source is a low use of glycogen stores, which are responsible for building muscle corset. Sports doctors advise taking 20 - 30 grams of honey during strength training, responsible competitions. Honey is bred in warm water with the addition of citrus juice. After workout high protein foods(cheese, cottage cheese) take with honey - 1 teaspoon is enough.

1. On an empty stomach, half a tablespoon of honey diluted in water with the addition of a teaspoon of natural apple or grape vinegar.
2. Two tablespoons of honey with a protein shake before and after training.
3. During strength exercises- Dissolve 2 teaspoons in a liter of water with lemon juice.
4. Half an hour before bedtime - 1 teaspoon with a glass of hot milk.

Proper honey

Price, medicinal properties and the demand for the amber product give rise to a lot of fakes in the consumer market. Unscrupulous manufacturers are able to sell a surrogate instead of a natural product: they feed bees with sugar syrup for quick processing of sucrose, mix starch and honeydew honey, molasses.

Arm yourself with the following knowledge and you will avoid counterfeiting:

1. Take a spoon with you and “wrap” honey on it. From a spoon, it will fall in a continuous ribbon, stacking in a slide.
2. In autumn, almost the entire product is sugared, but the crystals of the artificial product are large and hard. Such a product is, as it were, pressed into tiles - even cut with a knife.
3. Taste it: it should be tart, slightly pinching your throat. The crystals dissolve completely in the mouth.
4. At home, dissolve some honey in hot water- if it dissolves completely and after adding alcohol the liquid remains transparent - you bought a natural quality product.

Taking a competently natural product, you will be filled with energy, you will be able to resist colds, strengthen the body's defenses.

In the October 1955 issue of the magazine, an article by Lloyd Percival of a sports college in Canada did a very good job of covering the nation's rural use of honey. I would like to quote a rather long excerpt from this article here, because sports are such a huge focus in schools and colleges these days, and sports team coaches are constantly looking for ways to experienced athletes and beginners to maintain their body in a state of strength, endurance, energy. Since 1951, experiments have been systematically carried out in the sports college to determine the importance of honey in the nutrition of athletes. Previously, we were interested in honey as a product that is a source of energy, but special study its effect on the body was not carried out. Out of habit, we used it as healthy food due to its widespread use. In the study of products that activate the body, stimulate recovery of strength after an active workout and help maintain the body in active state with great physical exertion, there was a keen interest in identifying food products and drinks that could be most effectively used for these purposes. At the same time, we were most interested in the question: which of the products is ideal energy food? We were interested in finding such a product or combination of products that would provide the body with the fastest and most the largest number required energy without causing various harmful side effects on the body. To this end, a series of studies were organized.
We have also launched a campaign to collect information regarding similar studies by other authors. As a result, we are now able to score commonly used foods and drinks that provide energy, such as honey - 9; glucose - 7; corn syrup - 7; dark sugar - 6; refined white sugar - 4. When evaluating energy products, the following factors are taken into account:
1. Measurable response ( physical properties). 2. Digestibility. 3. Chemical reaction(acidity, etc.). 4. General tolerance of the athlete to specific product. 5. Caloric content of food. 6. Taste qualities (according to the tasting scale). 7. Variety of uses. 8. Profitability. 9. Main components.
An analysis of the results of our product testing shows that: 1) honey, as far as it can be objectively assessed, is an ideal energy product needed as a charge before a big physical load on the body, to maintain the body's tension during the period of greatest activity; to quickly restore energy after a period of extreme stress; 2) honey thanks to its high calorie even in small doses it can be a source of energy; 3) athletes love him very much for taste qualities; 4) on average, each athlete can consume large quantity honey than any other of the energy foods and drinks tested; 5) the popularity of honey is also explained by the fact that it can be used in different types and in combination with other foods and drinks; 6) honey is a pure, natural product, probably free from bacteria and irritants.
As a result, we recommend honey:

• 1) as a charge before doing big physical activity;
• 2) for consumption during the period of the greatest activity of the organism;
• 3) for use during the rest period, when the body is exhausted after doing a lot of physical activity;
• 4) for daily consumption, especially at breakfast, to meet daily energy needs organism; 5) as a common sweetener and for spreading on bread;
• 6) in combination with dishes such as fruit salad, curdled milk, drachen, rice pudding, etc.;
• 7) for baking various confectionery products;
• 8) for making capdi;
• 9) instead of other commonly known types of sweeteners.

Endurance: endurance testing of athletes showed that greatest effect gives the reception of two tablespoons of honey 30 minutes before the start of the competition. In any case, with the exclusion of honey from the diet, a clear decrease in the level of activity of athletes was observed, namely: when running short distances (for a sprint of 500 yards with a five-minute break between races); when running long distances at a speed of 1 mile in 6 minutes; in repeated swims on lanes of 100 yards, with a ten-minute break between heats. Note: when fed with honey during competitions, athletes were observed to have more high performance.
Recovery of strength: when receiving honey after a lot of physical activity, athletes quickly regained their strength and could soon continue training.
Note: in this regard, we recommend the use of honey by athletes participating in sports competitions and sports games requiring a lot of physical activity and stress. Our studies have shown that when consuming honey, students better absorb educational material, since honey helps to restore the energy expended during classes.
Reinforcement honey: Athletes who received honey between periods of hockey, basketball, and football, and between runs on the track or in the field, said they felt more energized and less tired at the end of the competition.
Athletes who were scheduled to play two games two days later reported that after consuming honey to replenish expended energy after the first game and before the start of the second, they felt better in the second game.
If athletes who were supposed to train or participate in sports after school or work ate honey at their second breakfast (lunch) and did not eat again after lunch, they reportedly did not feel normal decline energy during exercise.
Weight issues: consumption of honey (12 to 16 teaspoons during the day with meals or at night) helped prevent weight loss as a result of hard work, heavy physical exertion over an extended period. The athletes who were food regimen with a reduced calorie content, after consuming a teaspoon of honey after a meal, a feeling of satiety appeared, honey also contributed to better assimilation food, and helped to maintain a sense of strength, energy.
General conclusions: Based on a four-year mass trial of honey on athletes in college athletics, honey is an ideal energy source for recuperation after strenuous exercise. We can recommend it to everyone who goes in for sports, and to everyone who wants to be active, efficient throughout the day.

It has long been proven that honey and sport are two interrelated components, the combination of which guarantees excellent health to the athlete!

The biological structure of honey, as well as its complex composition, is determined by huge amount useful properties. They can be divided into three groups:

• bactericidal
• dietary
• Therapeutic.

Even now, some people believe that honey can not only preserve youth, but also prolong human life. However, its constant use is definitely not harmful to health!

Honey is not only a sweet treat, but also a valuable source of carbohydrates, which are remarkably absorbed by the body. Honey is quite easily cleaved and enters the organic system evenly.

Also in Ancient China honey used for healing internal organs a person, increasing his strength indicators, tempering willpower, as well as burning subcutaneous fat and preservation of youth.

All of these help maintain blood glucose levels. If we consider the situation with sugar, then everything is somewhat different there. It is transported into the body in a kind of "jerks", in portions.

Therefore, there can be no question of the constancy of the glucose level.

Fluctuations in glucose levels in the body can cause feelings of fatigue, hunger, and strong cravings for sweets.

Alternatively, you can help the use of honey or other complex carbohydrates.

As for enhanced training programs, here the body needs to receive enough carbohydrates. Honey - great helper in solving this problem, as it helps to increase energy reserves and endurance of muscle tissues.

If you use honey shortly “before” a workout and immediately “after” along with protein foods, it will help you better absorb the protein, and will also affect fast recovery damaged muscle fibers.

What is the daily rate taking honey? How much should be taken "before" and "after" workouts?

As you already know, each organism has its own unique features. For some, the ideal period of taking honey before a workout is 2 hours, and someone needs to take it 20-30 minutes before starting exercise.

P.S. Replace sugar in your diet with honey and you will significantly reduce the amount of calories consumed.

Interesting Facts:

1. One tsp honey shortly before bed will help to effectively support brain activity. It is known that the brain works even during sleep, therefore, it needs a constant supply of energy for normal functioning.

2. Even in ancient times, Hippocrates used honey as the main element in the treatment of complex wounds and various infections. This implies another property of honey: toning the immune system, which contributes to rapid healing wounds.

3. Honey contains a number of vitamins, various trace elements and essential amino acids, which provide big influence on the human immune system. Just 1-2 tablespoons of honey per day healthy sleep and long health You are guaranteed!