The 5 Best Food Sources of Potassium and Why to Add Them in Your Diet

Some consider banana as superior to the sports drinks, others considered it as nature’s energy bar. But no matter how you spin it, banana has a lot of benefits.

Those who are into fitness activities like athletes, boxers, football players, etc. are aware that the banana has high amounts of potassium.

The daily requirement of potassium is 4.700 mg, and the banana provides 11 % of this daily requirement that is 422 mg. According to one study, you can have more endurance from bananas than from sports drink.

What is potassium? The potassium is an electrolyte and mineral, and it is actually one of the most important types of electrolytes for your body.

The potassium can move the electrical impulses in your body, and allow the cell to function well and to communicate.

The lack of potassium can result in some problems like:

• Fatigue
• Muscle cramps
• Heart palpitations
• Dizzy spells

Bananas are rich in potassium, but they are not the only source when it comes to potassium. There is potassium in other foods.

In fact, the following foods beat banana with their potassium content.

Foods Rich with Potassium:

1. Spinach
With one cup of spinach, you can consume around 839 mg of potassium.  You can add it to your burger and also in your salad, it is flexible to consume.

If you like smoothies, consider adding it to your usual protein smoothie.

2. Avocado
The avocado i.e. alligator pear has rich content of potassium. In fact, the avocado has more potassium than the banana.

Just one-half of avocado has 478 mg of potassium. If you eat a cup of sliced avocados, you will consume 708 mg of potassium.

Bear in mind, that this fruit has a lot of calories. It is okay from time to time, but do not consume it on a regular basis especially after you are done with your workout.

3. Coconut Water
After good work out, you need to re-hydrate. You can drink sports drinks or water, but bear in mind that the best choice you can do is the coconut water.

In one glass there is around 480 mg of potassium. That is more that the sports drinks have.

4. Sweet Potato
It is not normal to weigh a sweet potato, but if you do you should know that in one that is 130 g there is around 438 mg of potassium.

This root crop also has carbohydrates, and that helps potassium to stimulate the glycogen used.

5. Plain Nonfat Yogurt
One serving of eight ounces has around  579 grams (20.4236 ounces) of potassium. In addition, it has a lot of proteins, and proteins are necessary for you if you want to have muscles.

If you are working out, you should consider consuming these foods that are rich in potassium. After an exhausting and long workout session, consuming one of these foods can replace the lost electrolytes.

To avoid the symptoms of potassium deficiency, make sure to add these foods in your usual diet.