REAL's Winter Exercise and Eating Tips

At REAL, we encourage women to maintain their exercise programmes throughout the winter even if they don’t have an event coming up in the near future.

That’s part of making Regular Exercise, Active Lives a lifetime habit for health and fitness.

Women sometimes ask us when and how much to eat and drink before they exercise. It’s something that can make quite an impact on how well your exercise session goes.

Eating too much before exercising can make you feel sluggish or even cause stomach cramps as your muscles and digestive system compete with each other for energy resources. But, if you don’t eat, you risk low blood sugar and can feel weak or faint.

Early morning exercise

·         Wake up in time for a healthy breakfast. This will replenish blood sugar which is low first thing in the morning. Breakfast, such as a wholegrain cereal or eggs on toast, gets the body’s metabolism going and improves your concentration at work and school.

·         If you can’t have breakfast, have a healthy snack. Yogurt and a banana. Or a small muffin made from wholegrain cereal (see recipe later on this page).

·         Have a drink of water. Staying hydrated is important. Have a drink before you start and aim for one cup of water (0.25 litre) per 15 to 20 minutes during your exercise session. If you don't replace the fluid you lose during exercise, your heart rate increases and your temperature rises, putting you at risk of dehydration as well as compromising your workout.

Exercising later in the day

·         Give big meals time to digest. Allow at least three to four hours for a big meal to digest  before exercising.

·         Avoid fatty foods before exercising. They remain in the stomach longer and can make you feel uncomfortable

·         Keep up the fluid levels for hydration.

After your workout

·         Eat a meal with both carbohydrates and protein. To help your muscles recover, eat a meal that contains both protein and carbohydrates within two hours of your exercise session. Carbohydrates are your body’s chief source of fuel. Your body stores excess carbohydrates as glycogen in your muscles for use when needed for energy. Good carbohydrate sources include cereals, breads, vegetables, pasta, rice and fruit. Protein plays a role in muscle repair and growth and includes dairy products, eggs, meat and fish.

·         Drink more water.  Water is the best way to replace lost fluid. If you're exercising for more than 60 minutes, a sports drink will help maintain your electrolyte balance. The sodium in sports drinks also helps you rehydrate more quickly.

Wholegrain muffin recipe

Golden Sunrise Muffins - from REAL sponsor Hubbards

Ingredients
125g butter
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
¼ cup milk
½ cup yoghurt
2 sachets Golden Sunrise Oats Sachets
½ cup flour
3 teaspoon baking powder
½ - 1 cup dried cranberries (optional)
 

Preheat oven to 180oC. Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly. Add milk and yoghurt and mix in well. Add Golden Sunrise Oat sachets and stir until completely combined. Mix in sifted flour and baking powder. Add cranberries (if using) and fold in.

Spoon into muffin tins dividing evenly (makes 12). Bake in oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Note

·         These muffins do not rise very high as they are full of fibre.

·         You can use any dried fruit you think would go with Golden Syrup flavour.

·         Excellent for kids to make or when guests are on the way as they cook quickly.

We look forward to providing you with more tips on our home page soon. We’re here to help.  If you can’t find the training, exercise and healthy eating advice you need on our website, please email us at info@realduathlon.co.nz and we’ll put you on the right track.

Kind regards

Jane Patterson

Event Director