Carbohydrate Loading for endurance events

As I enter the taper period for my fourth marathon I thought I would write down how to carb-load successfully.  I remember all too clearly the feeling of hitting the "wall" from my first half marathon where I just wanted to lie down and have a nap at the 17k mark.  Fast forward 12 more half marathons, 3 marathons and  a sports nutrition qualification, it turns out carb loading is much more than a bowl of pasta the night before a race.

For races lasting longer than 1.5 hours such as a marathon or half marathon, it’s beneficial to “carbohydrate load” for the 2-3 days before your race. The carbs are stored as glycogen in your muscles and liver. During the full or half marathon you will burn both fat and glycogen stores for energy, but it is harder for your body to convert fat to fuel. The goal is to arrive at the start line with your body’s glycogen stores full from carbohydrates to delay fatigue and performance decline. A full tank of glycogen and regular carbohydrate and fluid intake during the race will help you avoid hitting “the wall”. For it to work properly the carb load needs to be combined with an exercise taper as well.

Start your carbohydrate load 2-3 days before the race. You can’t fill your muscles with glycogen from just one meal, so a big pre-race pasta is not enough. For a Sunday marathon, I start on Thursday. For a Sunday half marathon I start on Friday. Carbohydrates should become about 70% of your diet. You don’t eat more during the load, you just replace protein, fibre and fat with carbohydrate. Be smart about your choice of carbs - although lasagne is delicious it’s very high in fat and protein so you’d be better off choosing pasta with a tomato based sauce. I prefer to make my dinner smaller and my lunch bigger on the day before the event so I have plenty of time to digest it.

You should be targeting between 8-12 grams of carbohydrate per kilo of body weight over the carb load period. So a 60 kg runner would need to consume between 480 and 720 grams of carbs over the day. As a guide 2 slices of white toast contain about 50 grams of carbs. Personally I can only manage to get in closer to the 8 grams per kilo target, the 12g/kg guide is more for ultra endurance events like ironman. If it’s your first time carb loading I’d suggest sticking to the lower end of the range. I add in some Gatorade and fruit juices to help top up my stores as I struggle to eat enough carbs otherwise.

The carbs you choose should be low in fibre to reduce the chances of getting an upset stomach during the race.   This is the time to choose white bread, rice or pasta over wholemeal. You can go back to your quinoa after the marathon. You can also enjoy some of the foods you might not normally eat such as a crumpet with honey.

You might find you gain some weight, this is because the glycogen stores water with it, which helps ensure you are well hydrated to start the race. You’ll use this water during the race so don’t worry about the water weight - think of yourself as a camel! Your pee before you start the race should be light in colour to show that you are adequately hydrated.

The AIS website is very useful in terms of figuring out how many carbs are in a serve.

The following diet is suitable for a 60kg runner aiming to carbohydrate load:

BREAKFAST

1 cup of low-fibre breakfast cereal like cornflakes with 1/2 cup of reduced fat milk

1 medium banana

250ml orange juice

1 cappuccino with skim milk

SNACK

Toasted muffin with jam

1 cappuccino with skim milk

LUNCH

1 sandwich (2 slices of bread) with your choice of filling

200g tub of low-fat fruit yoghurt

600ml sports drink

SNACK

Crumpet with honey

500ml sports drink

Banana

DINNER

1 cup of pasta sauce with 1 cups of cooked pasta

250 ml apple juice

This sample plan provides approximately 10,153 kJ, 427 g carbohydrate, 74 g protein and 42 g fat. This is not an exact plan, you might need to consume more or less depending on your weight, sex and training volume.

Wishing you all the best on your 42.2 kilometre victory lap - you’ve done the work, now enjoy the run!

Want to know more about how to fuel properly for your next endurance event?  Check out my 8 week endurance nutrition program here.

References

Bourke, L (2010) Clinical Sports Nutrition 4rd edition. Mc Graw HillAustralian Institute of Sport Carbohydrate Loading Factsheet

Meal plan calculated on Foodzone

Thai style beef salad

This is how I like to eat in summer - a big salad topped with delicious steak.  I discovered this salad when I was pregnant as I was trying to increase my iron stores and eat lots of leafy greens.  It's now a firm family favourite and perfect for my teenage children who need zinc and iron for growth, energy and immunity.

GF, LF, FF - see below for notes

ingredients

• 400 g lean beef (I like sirloin or porterhouse)
• plenty of black pepper
• olive oil
• 2 large handfuls asian salad mix or baby spinach leaves
• 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 20 green beans, sugar snap peas or snow peas, blanched
• 2 red capsicums,sliced
• 2 Lebanese / Japanese cucumbers sliced
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 small bunch coriander picked
• 1 small bunch mint picked
• Cashews to sprinkle over

Dressing

• juice from 2-3 limes
• 1 sliced red chilli (optional)
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 teaspoon palm sugar (or castor sugar)

METHOD

1. Season the steak with the pepper and cook in a hot pan with a little olive oil until medium rare. Remove from the pan, cover loosely and allow to rest for about 5 minutes then slice thinly.
2. Combine the salad leaves, tomatoes, green beans, capsicum, cucumber, onion and herbs.
3. Add the sliced beef.
4. Make the dressing by mixing the lime juice, chilli, fish sauce and sugar.
5. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix through. Top with a small handful of cashews.
6. Divide between serving bowls and enjoy. Lean chicken breast, grilled fish or grilled firm tofu can be used in place of the beef.

Serves 4

GF - check fish sauce,

FF (FODMAP friendly) - substitute green tops of spring onion for onion, limit portion of snow peas to five pods, substitute peanuts for cashews

Cold-pressed juices - should you be buying them?

Every where I look, the supermarket, the deli, the coffee shop  - cold-pressed juices are front and centre of the display, and they are expensive - $8 - $10 a bottle.  Should you be buying them? The marketing spin is that the cold press crushes and squeezes rather than damaging the nutrients through the heat and oxygen used by a standard juicer.  Sounds legit, right?  However the marketing hype has rushed ahead of the science.  Even if there are more nutrients, can our systems absorb them?  The average Australian diet already contains more than enough Vitamin C, and any excess just ends up down the toilet.  The way your gut absorbs nutrients depends on what else you are consuming.  For example, the extra virgin olive oil that you dress your salad with helps your uptake of some of the vitamins in your salad.

Chewing your food, rather than drinking it signals to your brain that you are getting full, it's easy to miss the satiety cues when drinking your calories.

All that said, the typical Australian diet does fall really short on getting in at least 5 serves of veggies every day.  Drink cold-pressed juices if you enjoy them and can afford them, but be sceptical about the claims on the bottle.  So you don't end up with a meal's worth of calories make sure they contain no more than one fruit and the rest is vegetable content.  Some of the juices for sale contain 88% fruit juice which is a significant source of sugar and calories.

I like to make my own green juice if I've not been getting enough veggies.  I use the thermomix so I can retain the fibre - here's my recipe.

green juice cold-pressed

Green Juice

Author:

rachel

Serves:

3

Ingredients

• 250ml coconut water, water or chilled green tea
• 1 apple
• 2 cucumbers
• 2 celery stalks
• thick slice of lemon
• 2 large handfuls of baby spinach or kale

Instructions

1. Put all the ingredients in a high speed blender like a thermomix or vitamix. Process for one minute. Enjoy straight away.

3.3.3077

Cauliflower and broccolini fried rice served with pickled cucumber

A vegetable hack I've been using a lot lately is to mix in half cauliflower rice with our brown basmati.  Tonight I'm sharing my cauliflower fried rice which is a huge hit. I serve it with quickly pickled cucumber, a fried egg and some tamari almonds. I did wonder how the "rice" would be received - see picture below, but mixed in with aromatic ginger and coriander plus the colour somewhat disguised by turmeric no-one gave it a second thought!

Cauliflower is a fantastic vegetable being a source of cancer-fighting agents (glucosinolates).   I've been using a lot of turmeric in my recipes recently as the active ingredient -curcumin - as it has been linked to warding off dementia and preventing cancer.  The AIS is investigating the anti-inflammatory properties for use as a sports supplement.

(I am listing this a vegetarian, but you'll need to take out the ham)

Cauliflower and broccolini fried rice with ginger and turmeric

Serves:

4

Ingredients

• 1/2 head of cauliflower

• 1 bunch broccolini

• 200g packet of pre-cooked brown basmati rice

• 2 french shallots

• 2 cloves garlic

• 2 cm piece of ginger

• 1 red chilli (seeds removed)

• 1 bunch of coriander

• 100g ham

• 2-3 tab tamari

• 2-3 tsp tomato sauce (I use sugar free)

• 1 tsp turmeric

• 1 tsp paprika

• shallots to serve

• fried egg to serve

• cucumber pickle to serve

method

1. In a food processor or by hand pulse together the cauliflower florets and broccolini. Remove and set aside.

2. In food processor or by hand chop the shallots, garlic, ginger, chilli and coriander.

3. In a heavy bottom frypan or wok fry the processed shallot mixture in a tsp or so of coconut oil or olive oil. Stir fry for 3 minutes then add ham and fry for another minute or so.

4. Add pulsed cauliflower, broccolini and rice and fry for another minute.

5. Add turmeric, paprika, tamari and tomato sauce and fry for a few minutes.

6. I like to serve with a fried egg, some pickled cucumber, a squeeze of lime and some tamari almonds

7. Make a quick cucumber pickle by slicing up 2 cucumbers, pour over a little rice wine vinegar, a squeeze of lime juice and a tsp of sugar.

Have you been thinking for a while that you would love to find out more about your gut health or why your weight won’t shift no matter what you do? Or maybe you just want to feel less bloated, have more energy and understand what food you are meant to be eating?

I’m offering a free 15 minute call to work out a nutrition action plan to get you feeling your best. There are no commitments just a friendly chat so we can work out if I’m the right person to help you reach your health goals.

Rachel is a university qualified Clinical Nutritionist based in Balmain.  She is also the busy working mum of two teenagers, so is practical and realistic with her advice . Rachel offers private online or in person consultations to improve your family's health and well-being. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram for more healthy tips and tricks. 

Simon's baked beans

Having a rustle around in the freezer I found the ham bone I had saved from Christmas.  I asked my husband to make his amazing baked beans and he also wrote down the recipe as we can never quite remember how he makes them.  These make a delicious breakfast, lunch or easy dinner.  You can cook an egg in the bean mixture as well.  If you don't have a frozen ham bone left over from Christmas then you can get a ham hock from the butcher or make a vegetarian version. A diet rich in legumes such as cannellini beans  is associated with lowered blood sugar and reduced harmful LDL cholesterol.   They’ve been linked to reduced risk for heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and colon and other cancers, as well as improved weight control.  Plus my kids love eating them!

Ingredients

• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 red onions roughly chopped.
• Splash of olive oil
• Ham bone (frozen from after Christmas) or ham hock.
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 x 400gm tin of crushed tomatoes
• 3 tbsp of maple syrup
• 2 tbsp of Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tsp of smokey paprika
• 1 tsp of dried chilli flakes (this gives it just a hint of heat but up to you)
• 1 tsp of dry mustard powder
• 4 x 400gm tins of Cannellini Beans (drained and rinse beans from 3 of the tins, but use liquid and beans from 4th)

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 160 deg C.
2. Fry up garlic, onions and oil over a medium to high heat (choose a big pot that is also able to go in oven). Whack in the ham bone. Pour in 2 tins of tomatoes and the bay leaves. Then add the maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, and spices.
3. Drain the beans in a sieve and rinse off the briney liquid from 3 of the tins, but chuck liquid and beans from the 4th. Give it all a stir.
4. Check seasoning but probably could do with a good pinch of salt and pepper.
5. Cover and put the pot in the oven for a 1 1/2 hrs.
6. I like to cook it the beans long enough so that the meat has fallen off the ham bone but not so long the dish becomes too dry. I switch off oven and just leave the pot in until I'm ready to serve.
7. Dish it up with crusty bread and green salad

You can also cook this in the slow cooker on low for 4 hours.  

Serves 8

Salmon, mussel and fennel stew

I love a fish stew and this is my simple one.  After watching a documentary last year about the fish farms in Vietnam I only buy Australian fish that has been sustainably farmed.  You can buy cleaned bearded mussels in the supermarket.  Mussels are a good source of omega -3 fatty acids.  These fats have many beneficial effects, including improving brain function and reducing inflammatory conditions, such as arthritis. Mussels are also a great source of vitamins such as zinc which helps build immunity.  Plus they are fun to eat, the kids love them! http://gty.im/175816512

Salmon, mussel and fennel stew

Author: rachel

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 20 mins

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 bulb of fennel

• 1 red onion

• ½– fresh red chilli

• 2 cloves of garlic

• olive oil

• 125 ml white wine

• 700 g passata

• 1 small bunch of fresh basil

• 400 g mixture of fish fillets, scaled and pin-boned. I used salmon but snapper or whiting would be good. Cut into large chunks

• 1kg mussels scrubbed, clean and debearded

Instructions

1. In a large, deep frypan (with lid) heat a splash of olive oil. Finely slice the fennel, onion, chill and garlic and add to the pan. Saute for 5 to 10 minutes until the vegetables have softened.

2. Add the white wine and let it simmer for a couple of minutes then add the passata and most of the basil (chopped). Simmer for a few minutes.

3. Add the fish and simmer for a couple of minutes

4. Add the mussels. Put the lid on the frypan and allow the mussels to open. When the mussels have opened (throw away any that remain closed), the fish will be cooked through (roughly four minutes).

5. Serve with crusty bread and a big green salad.

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My muesli with a 5 star health rating

For Australian supermarket shoppers you might have noticed the new "health star rating" system being slapped onto cereals, dips and other packaged food.  The health star rating system is voluntary  and it takes into account four aspects associated with increasing the risk factors of chronic diseases - energy, saturated fat, sodium and total sugars content. Fruit, vegetable, nut and legume content, and in some instances, dietary fibre and protein content are also considered.

If you've discovered that your favourite cereal has less stars than you'd like, how about a new 5 star health rated muesli?

I've been making my own muesli for a few years now, this recipe gets changed around depending on what I feel like, for example sometimes macadamia nuts instead of almonds.  I keep a 1/2 cup scoop in my cereal container and measure it out each day and top with a generous handful of berries and a big scoop of greek yoghurt.  Serve with your favourite milk.

Because I am a huge data nerd, I put my recipe through the health star rating calculator and it receives 5 stars, plus it tastes great, is full of fibre and protein and will keep you full until lunchtime!

---

INGREDIENTS

• 500 g (17oz) rolled oats
• 30 g (1oz) flaked Coconut
• 100 g (3.5 oz) raw almonds
• 100 g (3.5oz) sunflower seeds
• 100 g (3.5oz) pepitas
• 60 g (2oz) dried blueberries or cherries (unsweetened)
• 50g (2oz) LSA mix (linseed/flaxseed, sunflower, almond) or flaxseed meal
• sprinkle of cinnamon

METHOD

1. Mix all the ingredients together and serve 1/2 cup with greek yogurt, your choice of milk and berries

14 serves

285 cals 15g fat, 31g carbs, 10g protein, 7g fibre

If you need help sticking to your healthy eating goals I can help you. I'm a university qualified nutritionist based in Balmain, Sydney and the busy working mum of two teenagers, so I'm practical and realistic with my advice.  Find out more about me here.

Oven baked sausages with ratatouille

This is a fabulous recipe for a night where you are tired - the oven can do all the work.  Our oven has a reliable oven timer so I often pop this on to cook while I am driving around to pick the kids up from rugby practice etc.  It won't spoil if you leave it in the oven for 10 more minutes.  You can vary the veggies depending on what the team will eat and also add a tin of cannellini beans to make a cheats' cassoulet.

This is lactose-free and gluten-free, but I also have a low FODMAP ratatouille recipe.

Ingredients

• 1 red onion

• 1 whole head garlic

• 1 medium eggplant

• 2 zucchinis

• 2 red capsicums

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 2 x 400g tins canned tomatoes

• 1 tbsp fresh thyme and rosemary leaves

• sea salt

• black pepper

• 6 good quality pork sausages

• 1 x 400g tin cannellini beans (optional)

• 12 kalamata olives, unpitted

• fresh rosemary and thyme for serving

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200C

2. Cut the onion into quarters, and the head of garlic in half crosswise.

3. Cut the eggplant into half and then rounds, the zucchinis into diagonal slices and the capsicums into thick slices, discarding core and seeds.

4. Arrange all the veggies except the zucchinis in a large oiled baking tray, burying the garlic halves cut-side down. Add the canned tomatoes and their juices, and a dash of water.

5. Tuck in the pricked sausages, drizzle with olive oil and scatter with thyme and rosemary, sea salt and pepper.

6. Bake for 30 minutes, then add the zucchini and cannellini beans (if using) and turn the sausages. Cook for another 15 minutes, until the veggies are cooked and sausages are browned.

7. To serve, scatter with olives, rosemary and thyme. Squeeze the roasted garlic on top, and drizzle with the pan juices.

Serves 4

Calories: 290 Fat:16g Saturated fat:4 Carbohydrates:28g Fiber:9g Protein:12g

Roasted tomato and white bean soup

Today I've got two sick children so I'm making soup for dinner.  Soup, particularly vegetable based soups are a great option nutritionally as they combine lots of key nutrients including vitamins and minerals for relatively few calories.  Tonight's soup is full of tomatoes, my son is happy to eat this although he will "never, ever eat a tomato". Tomatoes are a wonderful source of vitamin B6, C, K, beta-carotene, potassium and manganese. The lycopene in tomatoes has been linked to lower rates of heart disease and cancer.

Ingredients

• 1kg tomatoes, quartered or halved depending on size. I like a mixture of truss and romas.

• 1 red onion, peeled and quartered

• 6 cloves garlic, unpeeled

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 tab maple syrup

• 400g tin cannelini beans, drained and rinsed

• 250 - 500 ml water to taste

• Pesto to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200degrees.

2. Put tomatoes, garlic and onion in a roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil and maple syrup. Season to taste.

3. Roast for 45 minutes or until vegetables are soft

4. Squish garlic out of skin, and discard skin. Add all vegetables and juice to saucepan.

5. Add the canellini beans and process the mixture with a stick blender.

6. Add water (I tend to use closer to 250 ml as I like a thick soup) and heat through gently.

7. Serve with a dollop of pesto

Click here for more simple, healthy and family friendly recipes

Baked eggs, spinach and ricotta in prosciutto cups

These make a delicious brunch and are perfect for lunch boxes.  My children enjoy them after an early morning swim squad or netball session and I love knowing I've got them in the fridge or freezer for an easy lunch.

Baked eggs, spinach and ricotta in prosciutto cups

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 6 eggs

• 6 slices of prosciutto

• baby spinach

• ricotta

• chopped herbs - parsley, basil and oregano (or herbs of choice)

• sea salt and ground pepper, to taste

• muffin liners - optional but does help with cleaning up

method

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

2. If using, line 6 muffin pans.

3. Cut each slice of Prosciutto in half and wrap into each cup to hold the egg mixture.

4. Put a few baby spinach leaves on top of the prosciutto

5. Crack in an egg to each muffin cup. Add a heaped teaspoon of ricotta.

6. Sprinkle with sea salt, pepper and chopped herbs.

7. Bake for 15-20 minutes until done.

Calories: 188 (792kJ) Fat: 12 Saturated fat: 5 Carbohydrates: 3 Sugar: 0 Sodium: 776 Protein: 19

Lamb with lentils, feta and mint

IMG_4519

Given the choice I am sure everyone in my family would be able to eat at least 4 or 5 lamb cutlets at a go.  However they are expensive and we just don't need to be eating such large amounts of protein at the expense of vegetables and pulses.  Lentils are a great way to balance out the proportion of meat to non-meat on your plate.  This is a delicious quick dinner and if you are having vegetarian guests you can increase the lentil salad size.  While you are prepping dinner you can add another tin of lentils and increase the quantities of tomatoes, cucumbers and feta and prepare a quick lentil salad for lunch the next day.

Lamb with lentils, feta and mint

Author:

rachel

Prep time:

10 mins

Cook time:

15 mins

Total time:

25 mins

Serves:

4

Ingredients

• 250g punnet cherry tomatoes

• 2 tab olive oil

• 12 kalamata olives, pitted

• 12 lamb cutlets, frenched

• 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary

• 400g can lentils, rinsed, drained

• 1 lebanese cucumber diced

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 50g sheeps' milk feta, crumbled

• 2 tablespoons mint leaves

• 200g baby spinach

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 220C.

2. Toss tomatoes in 2 teaspoons oil, season and place on a baking tray. Roast for 15 minutes until soft.

3. Meanwhile, rub lamb with rosemary and 2 teaspoons oil. Season, then cook in a frypan over medium-high heat for 4 minutes or until browned. Turn and cook for a further 3 minutes for medium-rare, or until done to your liking.

4. Rest the lamb, covered loosely in foil, while you warm lentils in a small pan of simmering water for 5 minutes. Drain lentils and toss with diced cucumber, lemon juice and remaining tablespoon of oil. Season.

5. To serve, place baby spinach on platter, scatter lentils on top, top with slices of lamb and scatter with feta, tomatoes, olives and fresh mint.

Calories:

405 (1704 kJ)

Fat:

25

Saturated fat:

7

Carbohydrates:

13.7

Sodium:

382

Fiber:

6.3

Protein:

29

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Rosemary chicken with pesto pasta

My basil plant is looking very healthy at the moment and as soon as I brush past and smell it I immediately think of pesto.  A huge bowl of pasta topped with an oily pesto isn't a great dinner, but in his "15 minute meals" Jamie Oliver has a wonderful pesto pasta served with chicken and a wide variety of veggies which is a much better balance for dinner.  I have changed this recipe around a bit as I find in the 15 and 30 minute meals Jamie jumps all over the place and I need to cook in a more orderly fashion!  This is a meal that my children adore and I like to serve it the night before a cross country carnival or rugby comp.  I often add in some zucchini noodles along with the pasta. Green beans and spinach are a wonderful source of dietary fibre which help lower cholesterol and blood sugar levels and helps prevent bowel cancer, diabetes and heart disease.  Best of all fibre helps you feel fuller for longer, helping you manage your weight more easily.   Chicken breast, almonds and parmesan are all good sources of protein which keeps you feeling fuller for longer.

taken from Jamie Oliver's 15 minute meals

Rosemary chicken with pesto pasta

Adapted from Jamie Oliver 15 Minute Meals, Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 2x 200g skinless chicken breasts

• 1 tsp fennel seeds

• 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 4- 5 cloves of garlic

• punnet ripe cherry tomatoes

  Pasta & Pesto

• 250g green beans

• 1 big bunch of fresh basil

• 50g blanched almonds

• 50g parmesan cheese

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 1 lemon

• 1 clove of garlic

• 250g dried pasta, pappardelle is nice

• 200g baby spinach

METHOD

1. Put the basil leaves, almonds, parmesan, garlic, extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice into a food processor and blitz until smooth. You might need a spoonful of pasta cooking water (see step 5) to loosen.

2. Cut the chicken breast horizontally in half so that it is butterflied out. Season your chicken with salt, pepper, fennel seeds and rosemary leaves over greaseproof paper and then bash to flatten with a rolling pin. Put it in to the frying pan with your olive oil and the bashed, unpeeled garlic cloves. You will need to turn it after about 4 minutes and cook until golden.

3. Cook your pasta in a large saucepan according to packet directions. Trim your beans, and add them to the pasta for the last 5 minutes.

4. Halve your cherry tomatoes, add them to the chicken and shake the pan. Stir the spinach into your pasta pan and drain but reserve a little of the water.

5. Return everything to the pan, pour in your pesto and splash in the water until smooth and silky. Slice your chicken breasts in half and serve with the tomatoes on top.

Rachel is a university qualified Clinical Nutritionist based in Balmain.  She is also the busy working mum of two teenagers, so is practical and realistic with her advice . Rachel offers in person or online consultations to improve your family's health and well-being. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram for more healthy tips and tricks. 

Creating your own food rules

I was reading this very interesting article about Food Rules and it made me think about how I was able to shift 10 kilograms of post baby weight with a mindset change about 5 years ago.

My rules are:

1.  Make an appointment for exercise.  Yes I would rather be meeting my friends for a coffee after school drop off but they know that's when I get my run or weights in.  It's an appointment in my diary that I prioritise.

2. Avoid wasting calories.  I think this is one of the reasons that the 5:2 diet and other intermittent fasting models work.  For me a weekday lunch where I am grabbing something quick on my own I make it a salad with protein or a salad packed wrap and protein.  I save beautiful sourdough bread, aged cheddar and ham off the bone for weekend lunches with my family.  This is similar to what Susie is mentioning about avoiding the cheap office birthday cake.

3.  I always make myself/pack something to eat for 3 or 4pm before I get really hungry. I grab a corn thin with ricotta and tomato, some almonds and grapes or some veggie sticks and humous.  If I do this I don't start hunting for food at 530pm and eating two dinners.

4.  I don't have packaged biscuits in the house (otherwise see point 3)

5.  I try to only have wine with company.  My husband is away a lot for work so I don't drink unless he is at home too.  I also skip wine at school P&F meetings and the like.  But not book group - when I'm having a nice night out with friends it is lovely to share a beautiful bottle of wine.

One of the subjects that I'm studying at uni this term is Food Behaviour, I am finding it fascinating so far.

Chicken, barley and lentil soup

This soup needs to be cooked when you have a bit of time on your hands as it takes about an hour to put together but you can just taste how nourishing it is.  I cooked it on a hot summer day in Sydney that had started off with a cool, overcast morning, can't wait to enjoy it on a cold winter's day.  This soup was based on a recipe by Jane Strode.

lentil

Chicken, barley and lentil soup

Author:

rachel

Prep time:

15 mins

Cook time:

1 hour

Total time:

1 hour 15 mins

Serves:

4

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup (80ml) olive oil

• 2 brown onions, finely sliced

• 6 cloves garlic, finely sliced

• 1 cup pearl barley

• 1.5L chicken stock

• 1 cup French green (puy) lentils

• 6 dried bay leaves

• 20 sprigs thyme

• 4 chicken thigh fillets, sliced

• 2 handfuls baby spinach

Instructions

1. Sear the chicken until browned all over for about 5 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside. Place oil, onions and garlic in a large saucepan over medium heat. Season with pepper and cook until soft and starting to colour, about 20mins.

2. Add barley and stock, bring to a simmer and cook a further 10mins. Add lentils, bay leaves and thyme; cook a further 20mins or until lentils and barley are tender. Add chicken and season with salt. Cook a further 5mins or until chicken is just cooked through.

3. To serve, warm soup over medium heat, add spinach and cook until just wilted. Garnish with a dollop of pesto (see note).

4. TIP:

5. Place leftover soup in small zip-lock bags and freeze – the single serves are convenient for work lunches or a quick dinner. Add extra spinach and pesto just before serving. Will keep for up to 6 weeks.

Notes

To make pesto, place 1 cup basil leaves,  ½ cup pine nuts, ¼ cup grated parmesan and 2 cloves garlic in a food processor and blend to a smooth paste. Gradually add 1/4 cup (70ml) extra virgin olive oil, processing to combine. Place in a clean container, cover with a little extra oil and refrigerate. Will keep for up to 4 weeks.[br]Prep: 20mins. Cooking: 1hr 5mins. Makes 2L.

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Teriyaki salmon with soba noodles and greens

My children are really not great fish lovers, to get them to eat fish I need to come up with a sauce that disguises the flavour somewhat.  We all love teriyaki flavour and the fish is delicious served with soba noodles made from buckwheat flour.  Salmon is high in healthy long chain omega-3s essential fatty acids that are needed for heart and brain health.  The body can't make essential fatty acids so you have to eat them, I try to serve fish a couple of times a week. Be careful when you buy mirin, a lot of brands are full of high fructose corn syrup - I found the spiral brand doesn't contain HFCS.

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Teriyaki salmon with soba noodles and greens

Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp tamari or salt reduced soy sauce

• 2 tbsp sake

• 1 tbsp mirin

• 4 salmon fillets (about 120g each)

• 2 tsp olive oil

• greens of your choice, I like a mixture of asparagus, sugar snap peas and broccollini

• 270 g packet soba noodles

• 2 greens onions sliced on the diagonal

METHOD

1. Combine the tamari, sake and mirin in a small saucepan and bring to the boil for a minute or so. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes

2. Place the salmon in a glass or ceramic bowl. Pour over soy mixture and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to marinate.

3. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Drain salmon from marinade, reserving marinade. Add salmon and cook for 2-3 minutes each side or until cooked to your liking. Transfer to a plate.

4. Stir fry mixed greens for 2 minutes or until just tender. Add reserved marinade and bring to the boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

5. Meanwhile, cook noodles following packet directions. Drain. Divide noodles among serving bowls. Top with veggie mixture and salmon. Sprinkle with green onions and serve immediately.

Lemon - raspberry lunchbox muffins

I love to make a bunch of these on a Sunday afternoon and freeze in snap lock bags to pop in the kids' lunches.  Did you know you can usually modify your standard muffin or cake recipe by reducing the amount of sugar or butter by about half?   The only change you will notice is that the muffin goes stale quicker, which is why I freeze them.  I've been enjoying using wholemeal spelt flour (available from the supermarket), it  has a higher amino acid profile then regular wheat flours, it’s also high in fibre with a low GI for sustained energy.

healthy Lemon raspberry lunchbox muffins

Ingredients

• 300g plain wholemeal or spelt flour

• 3 teaspoons baking powder

• 90g raw sugar

• 2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup

• 1 egg

• zest and juice of 1 lemon

• 220ml buttermilk (if you don't have butter milk use 1/2 cup plain yoghurt and fill up with milk to 220ml)

• 80ml olive or macadamia oil

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 160g frozen (not thawed) raspberries

method

1. Preheat oven to 180 C/160 C fan-forced/gas mark 3.

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, lemon zest and sugar in a large bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, mix the lemon juice, honey, egg, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and honey until combined. Don't worry if it curdles!

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined – don’t overmix.

5. Gently stir through the raspberries

6. Spoon the mixture into 12 1/2 cup capacity muffin tins lined with paper or silicon cases.

7. Bake for 25 minutes or until cooked. A skewer should come out clean.

   Variations - replace the lemon with orange and add 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Have you been thinking for a while that you would love to find out more about your gut health or why your weight won’t shift no matter what you do? Or maybe you just want to feel less bloated, have more energy and understand what food you are meant to be eating?

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Rachel is a university qualified Clinical Nutritionist based in Balmain.  She is also the busy working mum of two teenagers, so is practical and realistic with her advice . Rachel offers private on line or in person consultations to improve your family's health and well-being. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram for more healthy tips and tricks.