Feed Your Brain: Healthy Brain Foods

In this week's guest blog post Brianna shares her go to foods when she needs to power her brain and get through finals week.  A lot of her suggestions are applicable to anyone that may need to be on their A game beyond the standard 9-5 office hours.

Finals week is upon us. It’s the time of the semester that every college student dreads. The
semester came and went in a blink of an eye. They come up so quickly that most of us end up
spending nights upon nights in the library. As most of you know, it’s extremely hard to keep
healthy during this time.

You’re too focused on writing your 10 page paper along with studying for three exams you have the next day to even think about the health aspect of the foods you’re consuming. However, while eating healthy can be very challenging during this week, its definitely not impossible. During this time it’s actually more crucial to think about what’s going
into your body, it could make or break your work ethic. Opt for “brain” foods, or foods that keep your energy level sustained and boost your memory.

I use these 3 tips below to help me power through finals week.

1. Prepare the night before!
prepare foods such as trail mix or cut up mixed veggies to snack on. These foods won’t
make you feel sluggish afterwards, even if you consume more then you should. Also,
you’ll avoid the vending machine at the library, always a plus.

2. Watch what you drink
a lot of people rely on caffeine to get them through the night. This isn’t a bad thing, as
long as you’re not consuming too much caffeine and you’re drink isn’t loaded with
calories.

3. Cook on your study break
Omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants help boost brain power. Try incorporating foods
that have these in your meals. Foods that contain a rich amount of omega 3-fatty acids
include fish and dark leafy vegetables such as spinach. Antioxidants protect cell
membranes from damaging chemicals known as free radicals. Fruits and veggies are
great sources of antioxidants, and actually coffee has a ton of antioxidants as well.

Snack attack!

  • fruit
  • veggies
  • nuts
  • trail mix
  • yogurt
  • hummus & pretzels
  • wide-awake with minimal calories
  • green tea
  • black tea
  • black coffee (or w/skim milk)
  • water! -stay hydrated for more energy

Guest Blogger: Brianna Crosby

Hi guys! My name is Brianna Crosby I’m extremely passionate about nutrition and wellness and I love helping others succeed in terms of health. I’m a Food Science major at Clemson University and I’ll be graduating May 2015!  My goal is to become a Registered Dietitian in order to impact overall health through nutrition. Ideally the purpose is to assist others to achieve their goals to live a happier and healthier lifestyle

Nadia 

Training minds, changing bodies!

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook @NadiaMurdockFit 

Grab my smoothie eBook by clicking here!

Make sure to sign up for my newsletter on the homepage of www.nadiamurdockfit.com