Work out like a pro...
DOUBLE OLYMPIC CHAMPION ROWER HELEN GLOVER MBE SHARES HER TOP TIPS FOR MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR EXERCISE ROUTINE
1.Start the day with a breakfast of champions
Before a race, I have a breakfast routine that has pretty much stayed with me for my whole career. It starts with some slow-release carbs like porridge, which I top with a spoonful of peanut butter, sliced apple and chia seeds.
Breakfast is a key meal for fuelling my intensive training sessions and sets me up with the energy that’s needed to go the whole way through the day.
Even if I’m in a rush I would not skip it – I make a smoothie with banana, peanut butter, milk and oats.
2.Any exercise is good exercise
Exercise, whether it’s long walks or bike rides, has helped lots of people get through the pandemic.
Setting targets is so important, so I’d recommend having a goal in mind. In the last year, I’ve had to adapt my training around three small children and sometimes I use them (safely!) for weight resistance, or we just put on music and dance.
Hopefully the Games this summer will inspire people to get active and maybe even try a new sport too.
3.Skip the sweet stuff
As a mum of three under three, my sleep cycle is heavily impacted by my children’s, so good nutrition is even more important to keep me energised. If I relied on sugary snacks and foods, I’d really struggle with three hard training sessions each day as well as keep on top of family life.
I am much more aware now of the way sugar affects my body, so I always try to look for foods that have low or natural sugars.
Whole Earth peanut butter is packed full of plant-based protein and has no added sugar, so is great to help me power through. 4.Use the great outdoors
As a child, I would get outside, whatever the weather. It’s something I continue to do now that I have my own young family.
I’ve been so fortunate to be a professional athlete in an outdoor sport, rowing – the natural serenity of the river is so awe-inspiring and restorative for mind and body.
Whether you choose to walk and run, climb, wild swim or row, looking to nature is a great way to help you stay fit and active, and keep you coming back for more.
It doesn’t need to cost anything and there’s nothing like fresh air for blowing away the cobwebs and helping you feel better.
5.Carpe diem
As a young athlete, I was a middledistance runner and my coach once wrote “carpe diem” in my birthday card.
I think seize the day is great advice no matter what fitness goal you’re trying to achieve, however big or small.
This has been one of the toughest years of my life, in which I’ve discovered that training and looking after three very young children is quite a balancing act.
That said, it is an incredible feeling to have persevered now I’m a mother – I’m one of the only female Team GB athletes to qualify for the Olympics after having a family.
I hope when I compete in Tokyo this summer I can be an inspiration to other young women, to show that once you have had children, you can still keep doing the things you love.
■ Helen is a Whole Earth ambassador and is supporting Jamie Ramsay, a Team GB mega fan, as he cycles 10,000km around the UK in 80 days. Whole Earth is the official peanut butter of Team GB, find out more at wholeearthfoods.com