DIETARY ADVICE

If you have set yourself a goal for 2019 to take better care of yourself with the four little words New Year, New Me, well let this year’s Hope and Dream on April 7 inspire and motivate you.

Follow our nutrition and training plan each week where we will have all you need for a healthier new you. Remember small changes can make big differences to your health so start today don’t wait till something happens.

Small changes to start making today:

• Carry a bottle of water everywhere you go from office, gym, shopping, in the car, everywhere. It might not sound overly important but drinking water throughout the day will not only keep everything running smoothly but it will also help brighten your complexion, think more clearly and improves fatigue.

• Kick start your day with a balanced breakfast, as I have stressed from my first article. Eating breakfast has being linked to better weight management and also helps your concentration. So give yourself an extra five minutes every morning to sit down and have breakfast you will feel your metabolism improve over the weeks. Treat your body like your car, your car won’t drive without fuel and neither will your body.

Health, confidence and strength

With all the healthy eating and training I am hoping you are all feeling comfortable within your bodies, confident within your lives and strong enough to keep all this good work going. The journey of life, health and happiness is much more comprehensive than just losing a few pounds, it’s about feeling better each day and about you. So if you haven’t started the journey of healthy eating and physical activity start today and get that positive health, strength and confidence. This year’s Hope and Dream race on April 7 is a huge event and a very emotional one when you cross that finish line. Many of the participants will have that someone very special in their thoughts so this is where your strength and confidence will kick in.

The leaders that have been selected to take part in the race are excelling with their healthy eating and training programmes and making a huge effort. A lifestyle includes a wide range of different things from the food you eat to the beverages you drink, how much exercise you do, how much sleep you get, how much work you do and much more. So a healthy lifestyle can be far more beneficial and enjoyable. Don’t let anything stand in your way of becoming healthy and fit.

Start every day with a glass of hot water and lemon, lime, orange or ginger for taste.

Breakfast: vary your cereals such as porridge, all bran, bran flakes, Weetabix with your spoonful of chia, flax or hempseeds and few spoonfuls of fruit (super way to boost your immune system)

Healthy snack: super smoothie orange, apple, avocado, carrot and Greek yogurt.

Lunch: wholegrain wrap or sandwich with any of the following fillings, tomato, onion, spinach and feta cheese or the good old beans on toast with spinach. Healthy snack mid afternoon: something small and light just to keep your sugar levels maintained as in fruit pot or yogurt or slices of apple with peanut butter.

Dinner: stir fry chicken, or beef with loads of different coloured vegetables the more colours the better and brown rice or noodles or try making homemade shepherd’s pie with plenty of veg (try sweet potato topping for a change) or Nando’s spicy rice (recipe below)

Evening time: cup of tea and a plain biscuit or glass of milk and a little rice cake.

Try and be healthy 80% of your week and have your treats on the other 20%

Eating before training is very important and effects how well you train or run, practising how long you need to digest your food in training days is advisable don’t wait till the race day. Everyone is different so what works for one will not automatically work for another. If you find it difficult to digest food before a run or training try having a smoothie as it’s quickly digested without any effort. Carbohydrates are the first choice your body uses for energy so maybe try having a bowl of porridge with blueberries or wholegrain sandwich few hours before your training; this will help as they are slow releasing carbohydrates.

After a training session or race it’s important to have some protein to repair the worn muscles as in protein shake or a glass of flavoured milk and some good quality carbohydrates to fill back up the muscles with glycogen for your next training session.

Tip of the week

Be active be healthy and not only will you achieve and succeed but you will be happier and studies show activity can improve your mental health.

Recipe of the week: Nando’s spicy rice (you can also add chicken)

600g of long grain rice

One red onion finely chopped

Half red, green and yellow pepper, deseeded and finely chopped.

One chicken or vegetable stock cube dissolved in one litre of boiling water.

One chicken or vegetable stockpot.

Two handfuls of frozen peas

One tsp turmeric and paprika

Half tsp of cumin and chilli powder (little more chilli if you like it spicy hot) Cooking instructions:

Heat a wok with olive or rapeseed oil.

Add the chopped onion, peppers, cumin, chilli powder, turmeric and paprika. Cook till they start to brown slightly.

While you are waiting for them to brown dissolve the chicken or veg stock cube in the boiling water.

Add the rice to the onions and peppers and stir to mix well.

Pour in the hot stock and stir.

Bring to the boil then cover with a lid and cook (usually 10 – 12 minutes)

Stir during cooking to stop it sticking to the pan.

Four or five minutes before the end of cooking stir in the peas and replace the lid.

When all the water has been absorbed and the rice is cooked stir and serve.