TIPS FOR A JOLLY HEALTHY CHRISTMAS

During the Christmas holiday period we're always surrounded by lots of lovely food and drink so it's easy to over-eat. It's important to enjoy yourself over the festive period but taking some simple steps can contribute to a healthy and enjoyable festival period and it will stop you worrying about those post-Christmas extra pounds!

With so many treats around and the temptation to sleep them off in front of the TV, it’s no wonder that people gain an average of 2 kg (5lb) over Christmas. It only takes an extra helping of pudding and a few more glasses of wine or chocolates and suddenly you’ve had all your daily calories in one sitting.

While many of the traditional foods are actually very low in fat, it’s the trimmings and extra nibbles that can add the pounds. So go easy on these and take smaller portions of the roast potatoes, gravy, sausages, stuffing, puddings and cheese.

Christmas is a great opportunity to try out new activities and healthy foods with friends and family.

Here are some of my tips for a healthy Christmas:

Make healthy Christmas dinner choices

· For starters try melon or smoked salmon. Salmon is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids that are needed for a healthy heart. Another option is a hearty healthy soup made from seasonal vegetables such as parsnips, turnips, carrots, cauliflower, celery and leeks.

· Roast potatoes using a vegetable oil spray, olive oil or sunflower oil. Cut them into large chunks so they’ll absorb less fat. Do not deep fry your roasters, parboil them first then add the oil before roasting in the oven.

· Christmas pudding is quite low in fat and a small portion goes a long way. Try serving it with low-fat custard or crème fraiche. A baked apple or fresh fruit salad with natural yoghurt is also a good option with the fruit giving you valuable fibre and vitamins.

·Pile on the vegetables! Vegetables are our friends – they are high in fibre, contain antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and are low in calories. However DO NOT cover them in butter or any other fatty spread.

· Turkey is low in fat and high in protein so feel free to have an extra slice or two, but don’t eat the skin or you’ll add more fat and calories.

Choose healthy snacks

· Satsumas are seasonal, tasty and are a great source of Vitamin C so be sure to have a large bowl of these and other fruits available.

· Serve raw vegetables such as peppers, spring onions, cucumber and carrots with low-fat dips.

· Dried fruit is a lovely, healthy snack with lots to choose from, such as dates, figs and apricots.

Eat breakfast

Make sure everyone in your house eats a healthy breakfast. This will give you a slow release of energy, keeping your spirits up during the present-opening and dinner preparations and you’ll avoid over-eating during your sit down meal.

Some great breakfast ideas are porridge or pancakes served with berries and natural yoghurt – add a sprinkling of nutmeg and cinnamon for a festive touch. Another scrumptious breakfast is scrambled egg served with smoked salmon and chives. Don’t forget to include fruit!

Use herbs and spices to flavour food

Try to limit how much salt you use for cooking and therefore eat. Salt can increase blood pressure which can increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. Experiment with herbs and spices in your food instead.

Recognise when enough is enough

Choose to be full, not stuffed. Listen to your body and stop eating and drinking before you have to loosen your belt. Instead of suffering for the next hour while your body tries to digest, you can enjoy time with friends and family and look forward to the next meal.

Remember, being active is just as important as healthy eating and a great way of burning off those extra calories. It can also keep children and guests entertained. Physical activity is also a great way of reducing stress levels (and let’s face it, Christmas can be stressful). So wrap up and go outdoors out - you’ll feel a whole lot better for minimum effort.

Take your time

Christmas is meant to be an enjoyable family occasion so instead of wolfing your dinner down and feeling hungry take your time. Make sure you chew your food well, put your knife and fork down occasionally and engage in some festive conversation. This was as well as enjoying the food you’ll enjoy the whole sit down meal experience.

Get active!

. Leave the house: Instead of watching the same old films and repeats, go outside and get moving.

. Take a walk: There are plenty of places for walking. Walk to nearby friends and family instead of taking the car; if you have a dog take him/her for a walk and let them celebrate Christmas with you.

. If you have children encourage them to go outside and play some family games and if you’re luck enough to have  a white Christmas build a snow man!

. Enjoy those presents: If anyone in your family was lucky enough to receive presents such as a football or bike, go and use them, and get all your Christmas guests outside to join in the fun.

Give and receive activity-based presents: Walking shoes, a trial gym membership, dance classes, a trampoline - anything that will help you, your family and your friends to get active.

 Don’t drink too much!

Not only does alcohol have extra unwanted calories it makes us dehydrated, a hangover will make us tired the following day and quite often it gives us unhealthy munchies.

I’m not saying don’t drink because everyone enjoys a nice glass of champagne or mulled wine but try and limit the quantity you drink. Another great tip is to drink a glass of water between each alcoholic drink or accompany wine with sparkling water.

Another reason to stay hydrated is the fact that quite often thirst can be confused as hunger!

Lastly HAVE FUN WITH YOUR FRIEND AND FAMILY! Some studies suggest that those who ate ‘treat foods’ and felt guilty weighed MORE than those who ate it in celebration, without any guilty feelings!

No food is banned in a healthy balanced diet it is all about moderation and NOT denying yourself the treat foods. A little bit of what you fancy does you good!

I am not suggesting you lose weight over the holiday period, just try to maintain it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

P.S. If you do put on an extra few pounds over the festive season DO NOT crash diet in the New Year! Eat sensibly and exercise and you will find as you slip back into your usual routine the weight will fall off. If one of your New Year resolutions is to lose weigh then please do this by eating a well balanced diet by including foods from all food groups and gradually incorporate exercise into your day-to-day routine.

RED PEPPER AND CORIANDER FRITTATERS

These frittatas are tasty, healthy and are great for the upcoming party season. They are dead easy to make and can me made in advance. They are equally as tasty hot an accompanied with salad/ veg and can be eaten cold or hot. If you cook them like I did in a fairy cake baking tray, they are a great party food idea if you are entertaining over the Christmas period.

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs

4 tbsp milk

½ red pepper

Handful Coriander

¼ leak

Black pepper to season

METHOD

Finely chop the leak and pepper and sweat in a frying pan.*

Beat the eggs in a bowl, mix in the milk and add a sprinkling of black pepper.

Mix the veg into the egg mixture.

Distribute evenly between the fairy cake tray.

Bake in the oven for 10 min at 180C.

Serve and enjoy J

*Instead of frying the leak and pepper add 2 tsp of water and sweat them in the frying pan (you could also add ½ teaspoon of olive oil for flavour.

Served with salad.

Served with potato wedges and salad.

*Bon Appetite* :)

COD AND CHICKPEA SALALD

Although it’s winter time I still enjoy a tasty salad. Particularly when I’m feeling homesick and when it’s close to Christmas I really enjoy this Portuguese inspired cod salad recipe (cod is eaten traditionally at Christmas in Portugal).

It’s a very simple and easy recipe, it only requires cooking a cod fillet and chopping. The best part is that it includes one my favourite herbs – coriander.

INGREDIENTS

Salad:

1 Cod fillet

1 tin chickpeas

~30g French beans (I used frozen)

½ red onion

3 tomtoes

¼ cucumber

Coriander

Dressing:

½ lemon juiced

1 teaspoon olive oil

Sprinkle black pepper

*You could also add 1 boiled egg to the salad.

METHOD

1. Boil the cod fillet for approx 10min. After 5 min add the French beans.

2. Chop the cucumber, tomatoes, onion and coriander and mix.

3. Allow the fish and beans to cool. Whilst they are cooling mixt tra dressing.

4. Flake the fish and add along with the French beans to the rest of the ingredients.

5. Add the dressing and mix.

6. Serve and enjoy :)

Two tasty and healthy lunch servings prepared in under 15 minutes!

BRILLIANT BANANA BREAD

The first time I made this recipe was for a charity event at work and I have to say all 20 slices disappeared in minutes!

Although the end product of this recipe looks like a loaf of bread (if you use a loaf shaped baking tray), the texture is more cake-like as it’s sweet and moist. Nevertheless it is scrumptious and the way I have adapted this recipe has made it much healthier than traditional recipes.

To make this healthier I substituted the butter for low fat natural yoghurt and reduced the quantity of sugar, as I feel the bananas add their natural sweetness. Although I used 50g brown sugar, you could eliminate completely. I have tried both with and without sugar, and the end result is just as delicious without sugar. If you wanted to increase the protein content you could substitute the yoghurt for Greek yoghurt, quark or fromage frais.

The best part about this recipe (apart from being extremely scrumptious!) is that a slice ~30g will only set you back ~50kcal!

	Kcal	Carbs (g)	Protein (g)	Fat (g)
30g	51.8	8.8	2.6	0.9
100g	172.7	29.3	8.6	3

 *Nutritional value including 50g of sugar.

INGREDIENTS

200g flour

180g low fat natural yoghurt

50 g sugar (optional)*

2 bananas

2 eggs

2 tsp of cinnamon

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon of nutmeg

1teaspoon vanilla flavouring

1 teaspoon desiccated coconut

METHOD

1. Mash the bananas (I used a potato masher but you could use a fork). I prefer mashing rather than blending so you end up with small banana pieces.

2. Mix the yoghurt, eggs, sugar and vanilla flavour with the mashed bananas.

3. Mix the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and baking powder).

4. Combine the dry mixture with the wet mixture.

5. Pour into a cake baking tray (I used a rectangular silicone mould).

6. Sprinkle over the desiccated coconut.

7. Bake in the oven for approximately 45mins at 150C.

8. Remove from the oven and leave to cool (it is cooked when you insert a skewer or knife and it stays clean, i.e. no mixture stuck to the blade).

I left mine to cool for 5 mins before removing from the mould. After removing it leave to cool on a wire wrack.

*The banana bread can be served warm or cold, on its own or accompanied with a tablespoon of yoghurt and/or slices of banana or other fruit.

**You could also add walnuts into the mixture before baking and/or other dried fruit/nuts – even some berries. You could also sprinkle flaked almonds on top instead of coconut. Please note if you add dried fruit such as nuts this will alter the nutritional value and increase the Kcal and fat content.

Tip: Have as a mid afternoon snack, as a pre workout snack or as desert.  This recipe can also be frozen – once you have sliced the loaf wrap them individually in cling film, you then defrost as and when needed for a healthy snack or for future dessert.

*Bon Appetite* :)

10 REASONS TO GO (OR START) SWIMMING

After reading these next to bullet points I’ll be surprised if you aren't temped to jump into a pool there and then!

1.    Heart Helper

Swimming provides cardiovascular conditioning, provided you practice consistently and with good technique. While other forms of exercise may be more effective at elite levels (such as running or cycling); incorporating swimming into your exercise routine and pushing yourself, will definitely result in overall improved fitness.

2.    Balance Your Build

Swimming helps build longer leaner muscles which complement the shorter denser muscles that develop from weight training. These "swimmer's muscles" also help boost metabolism to keep calories burning longer and flexibility.

3.    Cross-training

Swimming not only boosts cardiovascular capacity while increasing muscle strength, but it also gives your body a break from higher-impact activities.

4.    Increased Flexibility

A heated pool relaxes muscles, increasing flexibility and enabling important stretching. Also, after intense lactic-acid-building endurance workouts (running, cycling, weights), an easy swim helps flush out toxins preventing muscle tightness and soreness the following day. Flexibility is essential to protect your muscles from injury.

5.    Strengthen Your Core

Swimming helps develop core body strength because it utilizes all the body's muscles simultaneously. Although 70 percent of a swimmer's effort comes from the upper body, kickboard and fin workouts can provide an excellent leg workout.

6.    Endurance

With swimming you can sustain the activity longer in comparison to other activities. With the right technique, you can exercise for longer periods of time compared than if you were running and, as a result, more calories are burned.

7.    Weight Loss

Like with any form of exercise, if you burn more calories compared to those ingested you will loose weight; however the important thing to consider with swimming is the fact that if you practise frequently it will help muscle tome and cardiovascular and overall fitness. Keep in mind though, as with any form of exercise, the more you push and challenge yourself the better results you will achieve.

8.    Not affected by weather

The great thing about swimming is it can be done in any weather, wheter it be freezing and snowing or 40C! Throughout the winter months swimming is a great way to exercise as you can’t use the ‘it’s too cold’ excuse because indoor pools are always heated, as are the changing rooms. During the summer months you can’t use the ‘it’s too hot to exercise’ excuse because indoor pools temperatures are adjusted; plus there are some clubs which do outdoor swimming.

9.    Not expensive

To go swimming all you need is a swim, a pair of goggles (I would definitely recommend you use them) and a swimming hat. Of course there are quite expensive items but there are also cheaper versions and just as good quality. If you decide to go swimming frequently it will make more sense if you tae out membership at your local leisure centre; most leisure centres are very reasonably prices and offer family deals and reduced fees for local residents.

10.  Escape route

I find swimming an excellent escape route. When you’re swimming you can’t talk or be talked to, there is also no way you can have any technology present such as your mobile phone, laptop or ipod. I personally think this is great, you can completely switch off from the ‘outside world’ and concentrate purely on your workout.

Whatever your reason, or whatever the excuse of a friend or partner, that swimming has not been incorporated into your consistent fitness routine, hopefully the list above has shown you how this sport can add to your quality of life.

Consider making a positive change and research the swimming opportunities in your community today!

Swimming is a fun, rigorous, and effective fitness workout – so join you’re local centre NOW!

CAULIFLOWER AND QUINOA BURGERS

Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable (same family as cabbage, kale and broccoli); it’s an excellent source of vitamin C, vitamin K, and folate. It is also a good source of vitamin B5, potassium, dietary fibre, iron and other B vitamins. The nutrients cauliflower provides support three body systems that are closely connected to cancer prevention; these three systems are) the body's detox system, its antioxidant system, and its inflammatory/anti-inflammatory system. 

If you want to receive Cauliflower’s fantastic health benefits you should eat it on a regular basis around 2-3 times per week, and make the serving size at least 1-1/2 cups.

Cauliflower is great to eat boiled, steamed, sautéed, in soups and in these scrumptious burgers!

INGREDIENTS

~100g cauliflower

40g quinoa

20g feta cheese

2 spring onions

1 egg*

Juice & zest of ½ lemon

METHOD

Cook the quinoa as per packet instructions.

Chop the cauliflower in the food processor until it resembles couscous texture

Chop the spring onion

Beat the egg

Once the quinoa is cooked mix it with the cauliflower, spring onion, egg and crumbled feta cheese.

Mould the mixture into burgers

Place on a baking tray and place in the oven at 180C for approximately 20 mins (or until golden).

Serve and enjoy J

**You can accompany these with salad or veg. I chose boiled broccoli and curly kale.

 

Process the cauliflower util it resembles couscous.

Mix all the ingredients.

Mould the final mixture into burgers.

Serve and enjoy!

*Bon Appetite* :)

STUFFED BUTTERNUT SQUASH

Another easy, healthy and tasty butternut squash recipe!

To review the benefits of including butternut squash into your diet read my previous post The Wonders of Butternut Squash.

No excuses, get cooking and make this delicious recipe and have on it’s own or as am accompaniment.

INGREDIENTS

1 butternut squash

100g spinach (I used frozen)

40g brown/ basmati rice*

20g feta cheese

*I use brown or basmati rice because they are classified as low GI (Glycaemic Index) which means they are slowly absorbed, leaving you satisfied for longer.

METHOD

1. Slice the butternut squash down the middle and scoop out the seeds.
2. Place the squash in a baking tray and the seeds on a separate tray.
3. Place the squash in the oven at 180C for 30 mins (place the seeds on the bottom shelf).
4. Cook 40g of brown rice (see instructions on the packet).
5. Once the squash is cooked scoop out the middle, chop and mix it with the spinach and feta cheese (crumble the feta cheese).
6. Place the mixture into the squash cases.
7. Place back in the oven for approximately 15mins
8. Remove from the oven, sprinkle over the seeds, serve and enjoy.

*This mixture will make more than enough to stuff the 2 squash halves. You can freeze the leftover mixture or use it to stuff pepper, have it as an accompaniment to meat/fish or eat just on it’s own.

*Bon Appetite* :)

BUTTERNUT SQUASH, ADZUKI BEAN AND ROCKET SALAD

Long day at work? Don’t fancy cooking? Well instead of reaching for convenient food make this healthy, delicious, low fat “fast food” salad. Prep and cooking time combined take less than 30 mins!

Adzuki beans are high in soluble fibre (essential for healthy bowel movements), and rich in many different vitamins and minerals, including potassium, niacin, thiamine, riboflavin and several other members of the vitamin B family. They’re also a fantastic source of magnesium, zinc, iron, copper and manganese. They are a also high source of protein and low in fat. You can buy dry adzuki beans and soak them over night; however for time purposes I but them in canned in water (available at most large supermarkets).

To review the properties of butternut squash see my previous post The Wonders of Butternut Squash.

For this recipe I leave the skin on the butternut squash, as once it’s roasted the skin goes nice and soft. I also roast the seeds along with the squash and then sprinkle them over the salad.

INGREDIENTS

1 can adzuki beans

~250g butternut squash

~100g rocket leaves

2 tbsp rosemary

1 tsp olive oil

METHOD

1. Dice the butternut squash into cubes, drizzle over the olive oil and rosemary and mix.
2. Place in a roasting dish and roast in the oven at 180C for approximately 20 mins.
3. Whilst the squash is roasting rinse the adzuki beans and mix in a bowl with the rocket.
4. Once the squash has roasted mix with the beans and rocket.
5. Serve, srinkle with the roasted seeds and enjoy J

*If you don’t like mixing warm and cold ingredients leave the butternut squash to cool before adding to the other ingredients.

**You could also accompany this salad with some warm wholemeal rustic bread.

*Bon Appetitie* J