Feeling Sluggish? Try These Energy-Enriching Superfoods
Food fuels your body. It provides the energy you need to get through each day, which is why it’s important to make sure you’re nourishing your body with healthy foods.
While any kind of food is going to provide you with energy, certain foods might give you a quick spike in energy but leave you to crash into an energy slump later on, so the types of food you choose is extremely important.
If you often feel sluggish or like you’re lacking in energy, it might be time to think about shaking things up and adding some foods that have energy boosting properties to help you.
What kinds of food should I be eating for more energy?
You’ve most likely heard of superfoods – or at the very least, heard the word superfoods. Foods that fall into this category are ones that offer a high nutritional content. Often plant-based – though some meats and dairy are labelled as superfoods – these foods are considered super because their high nutritional content comes with a low-calorie count and offers the person eating them loads of potential benefits from consuming them.
Some of the benefits that superfoods can provide include supporting the immune system, boosting cognitive function, aiding healthy digestion, and reducing inflammation in the body. These benefits can improve your quality of life significantly and leave you feeling more energised than ever before.
One of the great thing about superfoods is that there are many different kinds of superfoods and many different ways to add them to your diet. Eating healthy and taking care of yourself doesn’t have to be boring or difficult.
So, if you’ve been feeling like you could do with some extra energy in your life, we’ve put together some information about some of our favourite and most underrated energy boosting superfoods.
6 of the best energy boosting superfoods
With there being so many different kinds of superfoods and so much information out there about them, we’ve decided to narrow down the options for you. The ones we’ve chosen today not only have the potential to improve your energy levels, but also offer a whole host of other possible benefits, and they are super easy to add to your routine. So, keep reading to find out which superfoods we recommend for that boost of energy.
1. Maca Powder
Maca root is a cruciferous vegetable that is native to Peru in South America.
It has been a staple in the diet of Peruvian people for over 2000 years because the maca root was one of the edible plants that could manage to survive harsh weather conditions throughout the years.
Being a cruciferous vegetable, it’s actually related to broccoli, cauliflower, and kale, to name a few, though, getting your hands on the fresh variety in Australia isn’t exactly easy like it is with other cruciferous vegetables. You’ll find it’s powdered form available here – which still offers you an incredible array of benefits, including the energy boosting ones.
What is so good about maca?
There really is no wonder as to why maca root has become so popular in recent years because the potential benefits that can come from adding it to your routine are vast and varied.
To start, maca is a great source of loads of essential minerals and vitamins, including magnesium, potassium, vitamin C, calcium, and protein. These are particularly beneficial in providing you with energy, and not just short bursts of energy, rather the steady and long-lasting kind.
Maca is also an adaptogen, which is basically a natural substance that helps the body adapt to stress. This helps in boosting your energy as an adaptogen looks for the things that you’re lacking in the body and helps to provide balance where you need it. This also helps to protect your immune system and keep you fighting fit.
If you want to learn even more about maca and its amazing benefits, check out our piece on black maca powder here.
How can I add maca to my diet?
Like we said earlier, in Australia, you’re very unlikely to get your hands on fresh maca root but it is readily available in a powdered extract form, which still offers you the same incredible benefits.
The powdered extract form of maca root also has the added benefit of being so easy to add to your routine. You can mix the powder into anything. Add it to warm drinks like coffee, cool drinks like smoothies, add it to salads, dishes and even to baking. It’s subtle and somewhat nutty flavouring makes it’s a simple addition that you’re not going to be put off by.
You can get your hands on maca root powder here.
2. Cacao
Cacao is one of those superfoods that is so delightful and versatile that it’s understandable that you might find it hard to believe that it is actually very good for you.
This is because cacao seeds are basically the secret ingredient that makes chocolate taste so good. Now, while cacao plays an important role in the creation of chocolate, it’s not the same as chocolate or cocoa, though we totally get the confusion.
Cacao is made from the fermented and dried seeds of the cocoa tree fruit and was considered a divine food by the ancient Mayan people in central America hundreds of years ago. It was used medicinally, with a Spanish monk by the name of Bernadino de Sahagun, who lived amongst the Aztec people in the 1500s recording the ways in which cacao was used medicinally.
Over the next few centuries, this food of the gods was transported all over the world and today cacao can be found in various forms, including nibs and powders in health food stores and supermarkets.
What is so good about cacao?
Cacao is another superfood that is jam-packed with minerals and antioxidants, that can provide a range of possible benefits to those who add it to their diet. However, when it comes to energy boosting, it’s got some pretty great upsides there too.
Cacao contains naturally occurring caffeine, which we all know acts a stimulant and provides an energy boost, however the amount of caffeine in cacao is less than that of a cup coffee. But it’s not just the caffeine that provides a boost of energy, it’s actually Theobromine that provides the real energy boost. Cacao contains about ten times more Theobromine than caffeine, and though it is a stimulant like caffeine, the energy it provides is a longer lasting and more gentle kind of boost. Essentially it is a relaxed kind of prolonged energy boost and not one that is going to leave you crashing afterwards.
In addition to improving your energy levels, cacao is also believed to reduce the effects of inflammation on the body, and the high levels of antioxidants help to protect your body against free radicals that can cause aging and illness.
How can I add cacao to my diet?
Cacao is super versatile and being available in a variety of forms helps with the ways you can add it to your diet. The two most popular forms are cacao powder and cacao nibs. The nibs and powders can be used to create a tea with; they can also be added to any smoothies or baking, or you can simply snack on the nibs, or you could use either the powder or nibs to make your own form of chocolate spread.
You can learn more about cacao and find some cacao recipes here, and you can shop our range of cacao products available here.
3. Hemp Seeds and Oil
Hemp foods have become extremely popular in Australia over the last few years – this is partially due to the sale of hemp foods being made legal in 2017, but also because more people are learning about the nutritional benefits they offer.
Hemp based foods like hemp seeds and oil come from the Cannabis Sativa plant, though they do no contain tetrahydrocannabinol (the psychoactive compound in marijuana). The hemp plant has been used for at least 10,000 years for various purposes and is actually native to Asia.
While we call them hemp seeds, hemps seeds are actually a nut – though, when it comes to their potential benefits, this distinction doesn’t matter.
What is so good about hemp seeds?
Hemp seeds are chocka-block full of amino acids, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fatty acids. Basically, they have a bit of everything good.
The amino acid component of hemp seeds is particularly exciting as they are actually considered a complete protein as they have all of the amino acids, including the 9 essential amino acids that can’t be produced by the body naturally. As we know, protein is vital for many bodily functions, including providing our bodies with sustainable energy levels.
Hemp seeds also help to fight against the free radicals that can cause damage to our bodies, and they can also aid in keeping us regular and promoting good gut health. It kind of seems that there isn’t anything a hemp seed can’t do.
How can I add hemp seeds to my diet?
Hemp seeds are super easy to add to your diet. You can literally just eat them raw, you can sprinkle them on top of dishes, like salads; you can add them to smoothies; you can mix them into your morning oats; or you could also add hemp oil to your diet and use this in similar ways to hemp seeds.
You can also learn more about hemp seeds from a piece we wrote about what makes hemp a superfood here. Shop for hemp seeds and products here too.
4. Cordyceps Mushroom
For centuries, the cordyceps mushroom has been used in traditional Tibetan medicine, and though its use began long ago, the popularity of the cordyceps has only increased over time.
The cordyceps mushroom is an orange mushroom, that like many of the other super mushrooms out there, doesn’t really look too much like the traditional mushrooms we might think of. Cordyceps actually kind of look like orange peel that has been dried.
Cordyceps were traditionally used in ancient Asian cultures as a tonic herb and was thought to be a bit of cure all and have various natural healing properties. In more recent times, a lot of research has taken place to learn more about some of the potential benefits of this amazing mushroom.
What is so good about cordyceps?
The cordyceps is an adaptogenic mushroom which means that it helps your body to react in a positive way when faced with various stressors. These stressors can take the form of infections and illnesses and an adaptogen basically looks for the what you’re lacking in your body and helps to provide balance.
The cordyceps also contains polysaccharide in high levels which can help to keep your immune system working like clockwork and promote great gut health along the way too.
Cordyceps also contains high levels of antioxidants, which help to fight off free radicals that can cause cell damage, which in turn can slow the aging process.
How can I add cordyceps to my diet?
One of the simplest ways to get your intake of cordyceps is by mixing an extract powder, like this one, with either water or milk/mylk of your choice to create an elixir, or mixing it in with other beverages, like smoothies.
Cordyceps extract is also available in a capsule and tincture forms so, you’ve got a range of flexible ways you can add it to your routine.
5. Yerba Mate
Originating from the shrub that can grow into a tree of up to 15m in height known as the Ilex paraguariensis, Yerba Mate is ingredient responsible for a traditional south American beverage known as mate.
Similar to tea and coffee, yerba mate contains caffeine and is believed to provide a number of benefits to the drinker due to the plant nutrients in it – which we will talk about in a moment.
Traditionally in countries like Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay, mate is prepared by filling a container, known as a gourd, about three quarters of the way with the dried yerba mate leaves and twigs. The gourd is then filled with water at a temperature between 70 to 80 degrees Celsius. The gourd is then shared by all people present and during this time of sharing, it’s a time to give thanks.
What is so good about yerba mate?
We mentioned earlier that yerba mate contains some plant nutrients, which are responsible for the potential benefits you may experience when you add yerba mate to your diet. These plant nutrients include:
- Xanthines which are essentially stimulant compounds. These are the same stimulants – caffeine and theobromine that are found in tea, coffee, chocolate and cacao. They can be beneficial in providing energy boosts as well as enhanced sporting performance.
- Caffeoyl derivatives, which are antioxidants that have health promoting properties.
- Saponins, which are compounds that contain anti-inflammatory properties, which can help to prevent chronic illnesses.
The smooth increase in energy is probably the most widely celebrated potential benefit you can experience when you add yerba mate to your diet. It is said to be a more gentle stimulant than that of coffee or black tea.
How do I add yerba mate to my diet?
At Superfoods Australia, we have a tincture yerba mate that you can simply add to hot water to make a delicious yerba mate tea elixir. Yerba mate is somewhat similar to green tea in taste and is a pretty simple addition to your routine.
6. 6 Mushroom Extract
What’s better than one super mushroom? How about 6 different varieties in one extract powder form!
Mushrooms have been used for their health benefits in Chinese cultures for thousands of years. And in this blend, you can combine the benefits of 6 mushrooms – the Siberian Chaga, Reishi, Cordyceps, Maitake, Shiitake and Lion’s Mane.
What’s so good about 6 Mushroom Extract?
The combination of these super mushrooms and their rich nutritional contents, have a wide variety of potential benefits including:
- Adaptogenic properties – that help to create balance in the body
- Potentially increase energy
- Improve mental clarity
- Enhanced muscle recovery
- Strengthens immune function
There is also the added benefit of being able to try various super mushrooms rather than committing to only one type.
How do I add 6 mushroom extract blend to my diet?
You can a serving of the 6 mushroom blend extract powder to beverages and food dishes as you wish, including adding to hot water to create a tea elixir. You could add to smoothies or your morning coffee, or even mix into baked dishes.
Add energy boosting superfoods with superfoods Australia
You don’t need to scour the earth to get your hands on any of the superfoods we’ve mentioned today, or any other kinds of superfoods. Because here at Superfoods Australia, we’ve worked hard to curate a collection of amazing organic and high-quality superfoods.
We ship Australia-wide and for orders over $100, we’ll send them express for no extra cost. Shop our range of superfoods today.
