"on a shoestring"

Street foods can be healthy and are food for runners too! Read on…

Every time I do my training runs at UPLB, I would pass by this stall selling “proven” and “chicken skin” (balat), I would observe those students buying and most of them are either obese or close to being one. I feel sorry for them. Sometimes, I want to be mean and shout “Healthy Food!” of course in sarcasm. Don’t get me wrong, I like that too; but that was years ago when I’m not a running yet. Well, thank God I managed to choose what I eat. Naks, health conscious, health buff!

Anyway, I thought of ‘healthy’ street foods that food-conscious runners can enjoy before, during or after the run. Starting from my least fave to my number 1.

10.Balot (Duck egg).This is the famous food Fear Factor uses to challenge its participants. I find it hilarious for them to use balut. Once, I saw someone eating balut throwing the ‘sabaw.’ Beside the yellow part, that liquid is something I like especially with vinegar and salt. This duck egg has lots of protein in it. Remember this should be eaten in moderation, one is enough; two is manageable; three is too much! Eat more and you get cholesterol which is bad for your health.Veterans say that this aphrodisiac makes stronger knees for more endurance. (P12-P15/piece)

Balut

9. Puto (Rice cake).This is made up of ground sticky rice. Perfect for carbo-loading and post-run food. Some put cheese or coconut or salted egg as topping. As we all know, rice is a fine source of carbohydrates. It is also heavy on stomach so be sure to eat this 3 hours before you run to allow the body to digest it. This is a pre-run food, Php5-15/slice).

Puto

8. Kwek-kwek (Flour-covered egg).This is one cheap source of protein to build and repair muscles after the long run. You find it in every street corner. Choose the chicken egg not the quail eggs because quail eggs have more cholesterol. Oh, don’t forget the sweet and chili sauce for more enjoyment; vinegar with garlic and onion is great too! A nice post-run food to repair muscles.(P10/each chicken egg; P10/3pcs quail egg).

Kwek-Kwek

7.Calamares (Fried squid). I got this from Livestrong.com, “A 3 oz. serving of calamari contains 6.4 g of fat. This breaks down into 1.6 g of saturated fat and 1.8 g of polyunsaturated fats. Calamari also delivers 549 mg of omega-3 fatty acids and 1.2 g of omega-6 fatty acids.

A serving of calamari contains 6.6 g of carbohydrates. None of these consist of dietary fiber, starch or sugars. They are, instead, simple and complex carbohydrates.

A single serving of calamari delivers 23 percent of the recommended daily allowance of riboflavin, 17 percent of your daily intake of vitamin B-12, 11 percent of niacin and 6 percent of vitamin C. It also contains smaller, but significant amounts of thiamine, folate, vitamin B-6 and pantothenic acid.

Calamares

A serving of calamari delivers 90 percent of the recommended daily allowance of copper. It also delivers 63 percent of the RDA of selenium, 21 percent of phosphorus, 10 percent of zinc and smaller, but appreciable, amounts of magnesium, potassium, iron, calcium and manganese. This comes at the cost of 260 mg of sodium, which is 11 percent of the recommended daily limit.

A serving of calamari contains 15.2 g of protein. Seafood, like other animal proteins, consists of complete proteins, delivering all of the amino acids your body needs.

A good post-run snack, (P20/100g serving)

6.Halu-halo. This is the sweetest among the 10 foods here.  I would suggest that this be eaten after a long run for refreshment. The camote (complex carb), beans (protein), corn (carb), pinipig (rich in carb and fiber), coconut (protein), ube (carb), leche flan (protein from egg and milk) and milk (protein) are a welcome treat. This helps our normalize our blood sugar as it decreases after our run. Just be sure to drink water before and after eating ice cream to avoid tonsillitis.Post-run food, (Price ranges from P15-P50).

Halo-halo

How about you? What’s your favorite street food?

10 “Healthy” Street Foods for Runners part 2 is now up!

PS. All photos from the www.