Eat well and train well

Training burns calories - listen to your body and eat when you are hungry.  An ideal training diet is high in carbohydrates, low in fat with a good mix of protein, vitamins and minerals.

All foods provide energy (calories) but don’t waste time with empty calories - make sure each mouthful is nutritious. Try to eat fresh, natural ingredients,’ good’ calories if you can and select any processed foods carefully, checking the labels for those lowest in hidden fats and salts.  Remember to drink plenty of fluid throughout the day : )

Plan meals and snacks around your exercise as you will fatigue quickly on empty and so won’t achieve the best results.  

Eat and drink immediately after an endurance session.  Recovery is extremely important so rest after a hard work out session to help the muscles to repair.

  

What makes a healthy training diet?

• Eating regular and varied meals.
• Try to cook as many meals as you can from scratch, it will save money and you will also know exactly what is in it. Try to avoid processed foods as much as possible as they can be high in salts and sugars.
• Eat everything in moderation and don’t get too obsessed about calories; as this will help you to stay focused on the exercise without it becoming a chore.
• Eat a balanced diet and eat when you are hungry’ always listen to your body.

Don’t exercise on an empty stomach. Try to plan your exercise around one to two hours after eating.  Opt for something that is low in fat, high in complex carbohydrate, easy to digest, that will release energy to the muscles slowly. Such as: 

• A bowl of unrefined porridge
• A handful of nuts and raisins
• A banana
• Fruit and nut muesli with blue berries
• Wholegrain sandwich with hummus and rocket.

If you have a day coming up that is really busy exercise wise make sure that you have a good meal the night before that is rich in slow burning carbohydrates -

• Spaghetti with parmesan
• Basil and pine nuts
• Salmon on saffron rice
• A good homemade soup with pulses.

Get the best results by optimizing recovery time.

Carbohydrate is stored in the muscles and liver as glycogen’ which can deplete quickly after a workout making you feel tired and weak. The quicker the glycogen is restored the quicker your body will recover and you will feel much better ready for the next work load.

Fluid loss must also be replaced to aid recovery and protein to help muscles to repair and recover. Eat something as soon as you finish your workout to top up again.

Examples of a few good sources would be:

• A honey sandwich
• A bowl of rice pudding
• A slice of wholegrain toast with peanut butter.
• Hummus
• An energy bar or flapjack
• A piece of fruit such as melon
• A homemade smoothie made with yogurt or skimmed milk.

Carbohydrates, once digested are converted into blood glucose and used for energy or stored in the liver or muscle as glycogen.

Always try to eat the complex carbohydrate such as:

• Wholegrain bread
• Unprocessed cereals like whole rolled porridge oats
• Long grain brown rice
• Whole wheat pasta
• Pulses and potatoes

The above are all absorbed more slowly into the body and so will keep it running for longer avoiding dramatic sugar highs and lows that make you feel fatigued.

Energy givers

• Base meals on complex carbohydrates
• Never skip breakfast
• Try to eat something unrefined like porridge made with whole rolled oats.
• Eat a good quality muesli or tomatoes on wholegrain toast.
• Use brown sugar or better still honey.
• Also use dried fruit or bananas to sweeten your cereal.
• Eat carbohydrate rich snacks - baked beans - malt loaf - flapjacks - wholegrain sandwich.
• Pulses are a great source of slow burning carbohydrates - soups made with pulses such as chick peas - butter beans or couscous dishes and stews.
• Lentils are good as they are quick to cook

There are hundreds of different types of pasta and rice in the shops to choose from.

What about fruit and vegetables 

When we exercise the body needs to be well stocked, the same as your car would need to have oil in order to run correctly and fuel to keep running for as long as is needed. The body also needs to be well stocked with fuel such as vitamins and minerals to help release energy from the foods eaten and also to boost the immune system.

Variety is the spice of life so think of a rainbow and choose all the different selection of the following different fruits and vegetables in the diet every day for antioxidants including beta- carotene, vitamin C, fiber and folic acid.

Citrus fruits and berries are great to fuel for vitamin C and also to boost the immune system.

Green vegetables such as spinach, cabbage, watercress, broccoli, fresh herbs – to keep the iron and folic acid levels topped up to keep the brain functioning well.

Brightly coloured fruit or vegetables such as carrots, yellow peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes are all good to help promote antioxidants, beta carotene and vitamin C.

Ways of fitting more fruit and vegetables into our diet

·      Drink fresh fruit  (not from concentrate; as it is mostly sugars)

·      Include fresh fruit with breakfast everyday

·      Add lots of fresh herbs when cooking

·      Steam and stir fry if possible

·      Snack on raw fruit and vegetables

·      Make salsas with avocados, cucumber, mangos, fresh herbs and lime juice

·      Keep berries in the freezer so they are easily available

·      Make healthy soups from scratch, that way you know what’s in it

·      Have a portion of fresh vegetables or a salad with every meal

·      Don’t forget that canned fruit or vegetables also count towards the five a day.

And remember that you are only human so having treats at the weekend is ok as long as we try and maintain a wholesome diet most of the time.

Next we will have a look at Proteins within the diet and all of the amazing benefits it has within the body such as power and recovery.

Cheers ‘ bottoms up’   xxx

‘ Your body is the greatest thing that you will ever own’