Hi Guys,
 
So I’ve helped you shop, I’ve helped you read your labels, now let’s put a sample meal plan together. So all meals should be protein based. Why? Because protein based foods:
- Keep you fuller for longer
- They don’t have a huge impact on blood sugar levels
- They have a higher thermic effect from food meaning they require more energy to break the food down
- Normally, quite low in calories for quantity
I also try to add vegetables to all/most meals. This is to ensure you are getting adequate micronutrient content from foods, this will support a good immune system and overall health. I have chosen whole carbohydrates in the form of grains and fruit. Fats are vital in the diet for the absorption of fat soluble vitamins A, D,E and K. The fat sources I have chosen are also very nutritious.
Sample Meal Plan
Breakfast: Smoked salmon, spinach and sesame seed
                      omelette (2eggs,2 egg whites) cooked in coconut/olive oil
                    - Handful of blueberries
                    - Cup of green tea
Mid morning snack: 3 tablespoons Greek yogurt with ½ scoop whey protein
                                     - Small handful raspberries
Lunch: Grilled Cajun chicken with large green salad and half avocado and
50g cous cous
Mid Afternoon snack: 2 carrots chopped with tbsp. hummus
                                                Tin of tuna
Dinner: 2 turkey burgers with broccoli and cauliflower
 
 
 
So now you have a good idea of what foods to eat. Here are some tasty, healthy recipes so you won’t get bored.
 
 
Recipes
 
Turkey Chilli con carne
 
400g turkey mince
Can of kidney beans
Pasata
Chilli powder
Chilli flakes
Garlic powder
Pepper
Paprika
 
Pan fry veg and turkey mince. Add pasata herbs, kidney beans and spices. Serve with rice or cauliflower rice for a low carb alternative.
re to edit.

Butternut squash lasagne
 
1 large butternut squash
400g turkey mince
Tin chopped tomatoes
Mixed herbs
Garlic
Sea salt
Pepper
Peppers
Onion
 
 
Pan fry veg and turkey mince. Add chopped tomatoes and herbs and spices. Cut butternut squash into slices and boil. In a casserole dish, add the fried mixture and layer with butternut squash. Add cheese if you want.


​‘Shepards Pie’
 
1 large sweet potato
400g turkey mince
Tin chopped tomatoes
Mixed herbs
Garlic
Sea salt
Pepper
Peppers
Carrots
Onion
 
Pan fry veg and turkey mince. Add chopped tomatoes and herbs and spices. Boil sweet potato and mash. In a casserole dish, add the fried mixture and top with sweet potato mash. Add cheese if you want J

One topic that comes up time and time again is snacks. What can you do to ‘curb that sweet tooth’? Or ‘What will replace my crisps’? There are so many nutritious snacks out there that we often don’t think of. Remember, healthy snacks could be the difference between a ‘good’ and ‘bad’ day.
Healthy Snack options:

• Fruit salad with Greek  yogurt and flaxseed
• Peanut butter and fruit on rice cakes
• Protein shake and piece of fruit
• Nuts
• Seeds
• Protein bar/wholefood snacks
• Boiled eggs
• Corncakes/Ricecakes
• Tuna and cottage cheese

Next Week: Training Days vs Non Training days – Is there a difference?
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Labelling

So you’ve started to buy your one ingredient foods, you’re drinking your 2 litres of water daily, you are cooking the right way but you pick up a product that you cannot understand the labelling on? Sound familiar? So even if we have a diet based on whole foods, we will always come across foods with ingredients lists. It is so important to be able to read these. Remember ingredients lists are written in descending order so the first ingredient is the most abundant with the least at the end of the list. Beware of hidden salts, additives, colourants and sugars. Sugar can be disguised as a number of names: Maltodextrin, Galactose, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Fruit Juice Concentrate, Barley Malt, Diatase, Molasses, Treacle and the list goes on.  Be cautious of this!! 

Quality is another important thing to look for when looking at labelling. In Ireland, we have quality assurance labels, keep an eye out for these, especially with regards farmed produce. But we can delve into this further. Are all products created equal? Let's take the humble pork sausage. It has a quality assurance guarantee but you are still unsure what to pick? There is a quality difference in products like ‘80% pork sausages’ versus ‘50% pork sausages’. You have to question what else is in foodstuffs? You need to ask yourselves these questions and be aware of this when shopping. Another example is 100% peanut butter versus the store bought brand which has lots of hidden extras. Some brands of peanut butter are considered health products while others are sugar ridden.

Another issue that has come to light is health food marketing. Some foods are marketed as ‘healthy’ alternatives but are actually as bad as their ‘unhealthy’ alternative. A great example is certain granola brands which claim to be 'healthy' but actually contain more sugar than a chocolate bar. 'Protein' has become a buzz word of late and all brands seem to be jumping on the bandwagon. Make sure to read the label and be sure there is sufficient protein and it is not just a marketing gimmick.

Portion Sizes

A lot of people get the whole healthy eating and they do it rather well but remember we can still over consume healthy foods. Here is a great guide for males and females for portion size. Now remember this is just a guide and depending on your activity levels, weight etc, these do differ.

For protein-dense foods like meat, fish, eggs, dairy, or beans, use a palm sized serving.
For men it is recommended two palm-sized portions with each meal.
For women it is recommended one palm-sized portion with each meal
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​To determine your vegetable intake
For veggies like broccoli, spinach, salad, carrots, etc. use a fist-sized serving.
For men it is recommended 2 fist-sized portions of vegetables with each meal.
For women it is recommended 1 fist-sized portions of vegetables with each meal

To determine your carbohydrate intake
For carbohydrate-dense foods – like grains, starches, or fruits – use a cupped hand to determine your serving size.
For men it is recommended 2 cupped-hand sized portions of carbohydrates with most meals.
For women it is recommended 1 cupped-hand sized portions of carbohydrates with most meals.

​To determine your fat intake
For fat-dense foods – like oils, butters, nut butters, nuts/seeds – use your entire thumb to determine your serving size.
For men it is recommended 2 thumb-sized portions of fats with most meals.
For women it is recommended 1 thumb-sized portions of fats with most meals.

See Below.
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Now you’re ready to go shopping

Meat, Fish, Eggs
Eggs
Chicken breasts
Turkey mince
Turkey steak
Beef mince (LEAN)
Tuna
Prawns
White fish
Salmon
 
 
Fruit and Veg
Berries
Apples
Plums
Kiwis
Bananas
Pears
Chopped tomatoes
Green vegetables
Frozen berries
Peas
Cauliflower
Butternut squash
Kale
Salad leaves
White potatoes
Grapefruit
Peppers
Mushrooms
Garlic
Avocado
Carrots
Sweet potato
Olives
Beetroot
 
Nuts and seeds
Choice of nuts – unsalted Lidl (baking section), Tesco, Aldi
Peanut butter/nut butter – Meridian Health Food Shop
Milled linseed, goji berries, sunflower seeds
Aldi/Lidl
Chia seed Aldi
Flaxseed Health Food Shop
Pumpkin seeds Aldi/Lidl
Sesame seeds Aldi/Lidl
 
Grains
Basmati Rice
Brown Rice
Porridge oats Aldi/Dunnes
Wholegrain Ricecakes
Ricecakes
 
Others
Curry powder
Cumin
Turmeric
Garlic powder
Chilli powder
Sea salt
Plain Greek yogurt 0%
Cottage cheese
Thai red paste
Pesto
Pasata
Green tea
Low fat Cheese
Dark Chocolate (85%)
Coconut milk
Coconut oil (to cook with)
Olive oil and balsamic vinegar
(salad dressing)
Wheatgrass
Mint
Ginger
Raw Cacao powder Health Food shop
Maple syrup Aldi/Lidl
Desiccated coconut Dunnes

Next week stay tuned for: Meal plan, recipes and snack ideas
​

Introduction – Baby Steps

Hi guys,

Firstly, I’d like to say how excited I am to be starting this blog. I plan on this being a weekly slot, so I hope you enjoy and learn a lot more about nutrition.

So today’s first blog post is going to be about introductions. I’ll start with an introduction about myself and continue on to an introduction into the vast, complicated (but I’ll make it easier) world of nutrition.
My name is Amanda Mc Loone and I’m 26. For members, you will know me for the last year as a trainer here in Fullbody Workhouse. Fitness has always been a massive part of my life having played every sport under the sun at a young age. After years of being mediocre at all sports I decided to stick to one and the GAA football pitch soon became my second home. I have played with many teams over the years in school and college as well as my club team St.Faithleachs. I have played with Roscommon from the tender age of 13 and have been involved with different age groups for the past 12 years. As for my education, I studied Human Nutrition in UCD for 4 years and am a fully qualified nutritionist. In 2014, after years of training and a nutrition degree in the bag, I decided the fitness industry was where I wanted to be. I studied in Elite Fitness and Performance Academy Blackrock. I have been involved in the industry for the past three years and have worked in all areas. I have run my own boot camps, worked in a hotel gym and worked as a nutritionist with athletes namely Roscommon minor team. I started with Fullbody Workhouse almost a year ago and to say it is my dream job is an understatement :) I started up a nutrition blog on Facebook ‘Clean and Lean Sporty Girl’ which has led to great opportunities such as publications in private magazines national papers as well as getting me this job in Fullbody Workhouse <3
​
Introduction to nutrition
So enough talk about me and more talk about food. A healthy lifestyle is a combination of a healthy body and mind. A healthy body comes down to the foods that go into your body and the exercise you expend. Food is broken down into macro- and micronutrients. Macro nutrients are your proteins, carbohydrates and fat, these are the foods needed to fuel your body, keep muscles and organs functioning and insulate the body. Micronutrients are vitamins and minerals needed for the functioning of a healthy immune system as well as healthy skin, hair and nails to name a few.
So what do we mean by healthy eating?
Healthy eating to me is eating a range of nutritious foods with lots of colour and flavour. It is eating to fuel and nourish the body. These days there is so much talk about ‘Superfoods’ and ‘Supplements’ that people get bogged down on what foods are right and wrong to eat. I am going to make it a lot simpler. Whether your goals are weight loss, muscle gain or you just want to be healthier, these 5 tips will help you achieve your goals.

1. Base your meals on one ingredient foods, the more ingredients the more processed the foods; processed foods with additives are the foods we want to eliminate from the diet. One ingredient foods: meat, fish, eggs, beans, peas, nuts, seeds, fruit and vegetables Foods to reduce: All processed food, low fat products, sugar, fizzy drinks, alcohol, crisps, sweets, baked good
2. Drink at least 2 litres of water per day – Remember the body is approximately 70 % water. It’s the easiest tip but probably the most important. Dehydration can cause headaches, blurry vision as well as migraines and fatigue
3. Eat small meals often – Eating 5 to 6 times per day means the body cannot go into starvation mode and metabolism is constantly running. I recommend this over the ‘normal’ 3 large meals a day
4. Educate yourself when you are shopping – start reading labels. You would be surprised to see the hidden ingredients in certain foods
5. Cooking methods and seasonings can make a big difference – I recommend grilling and when frying use better options like coconut and olive oil. Herbs, spices and sea salt should be used to flavour food instead of pre packed or convenience sauces

 
A healthy lifestyle is not a giant leap. It is about baby steps. If you can manage these 5 tips this week you are well on the road to a healthier version of yourself.

​Next week: Labelling, portion sizes and a shopping list