Blog about my diet…not dieting!

I get asked a lot about my diet and also on dieting so thought i’d note down my thoughts for everyone in one place.

So first off, I dont diet  – I hate the idea of it and I especially hate the idea of Chloe ever hearing about me “dieting” so I choose to make the healthy diet choice most of the time!  Not all the time as life’s far too short, just more often than not.

Don’t think because I run a lot that I can eat what I want.  Unfortunately life’s not that simple or kind.  By all means if I’ve been working out loads and done a long run then definitely I’m treating myself to a piece of cake/chocolate bar but I cant do this everyday.

My focus is on healthy eating and trying to make stuff from scratch to reduce my reliance on ready meals.  Dont get me wrong, they totally have their place in busy life, just dont have them all the time.  If you ever look at the salt/sugar content in a normal ready meal, you’d be horrified by the amount.  When we did our extensino we were without a kitchen for 8 weeks!!  We had a toaster, a microwave and a kettle and we ate so much bread and so many ready meals in that two months.  Genuinely I have barely touched a ready meal since.  They just make you feel crap – and never full.

I get a lot of my recipes from the Body Coaches recipe books.  It’s really helped give us some simple, quick and healthy meals for not only the husband and I but also for the kids.  I recommend eating whole grains, fruit, vegetable and healthy fats.  I’ve stopped buying “fat free” or “reduced fat” items from the supermarket as I personally dont see how something that has been altered can be healthier than the real thing.  Full fat yoghurt is surely better for you than something which has been modified and then altered to taste like full fat yoghurt?  Surely??  The only caveat to that rule is semi skimmed milk – full fat milk is just too much!!

Drink more water is my next bit of advice.  You’re meant to drink approx 2 litres every days which can be a challenge but once you focus on doing it, it does become easier after a while.  Also, on the flip side of this, dont drink too much water – an “overabundance of water can be futile”.  It’s critical to drink water, especially when training but too much of it can lead to issues such as cramping, bloating or worse so definitely dont overdo it!

Some experts say eat little and often and some say eat 3 normal sized meals a day and have healthy snacks in between.  I prefer the later personally as I enjoy having an evening meal with my husband (when I’m home and not working!!)

Breakfast in my opinion is non-negotiable.  I need food in me to function.  Even if I’m doing Parkrun at 9am on a saturday morning, I’ll always grab a banana or something en route and then have my breakfast when I’m home.  My everyday go to breakfast is cereal – maybe it’s the 6 years working at Kellogg’s which has indoctrinated my psyche but I love it.  Cold milk and Shreddies is my favourite but I do love a bowl of Cheerios (I can say this now I dont work for the big K!!)

Lunch for me is usually a sandwich or a salad.  I have a preferred tendency towards wraps which I know are high for “Syns” on Slimming World but I really like them and I find them more filling that bread or a roll (barm, bap, whatever you want to call them!) and I like the way you can cram them full of lettuce and other bits without it spilling over the edge!!

Dinner as I said earlier is normally a Body Coach recipe.  My current favourites are the Chilli Con Avocado, the Oaty Chicken and in a hurry curry fried rice.  I’m trying new ones all the time so will keep you all posted when I find any other crackers!

Snacks are my weakness.  Finding a quick, healthy snack (which isnt always fruit) is tough going.  As I’m so active, I’m hungry A LOT.  If there’s chocolate in the house then I’m all over it so I try not to have it in!  I try and go for things like maltloaf, yoghurt with granola/fruit, protein bars, but sometimes they just dont cut it so I go with the “moderation” approach.  In that if I’ve run loads, done a workout and eaten primarily healthily that day, then I can have the odd chocolate mousse/bar of dairy milk/packet of the kids animal biscuits!!  You’ve got to reward your hard work somehow right??

So that’s it in a nutshell.  I’m not a fan of keeping food diaries or monitoring things too much but I believe it’s a matter of a happy medium…nice healthy, nutritious meals with a few treats thrown in to keep yourself sane/happy

One final note…wine counts as one of your 5 a day right?????!!!!!!!!