Food diary advice

CRAIGO5000

I was just reading Cycling Weekly and enjoyed the article on nutrition.

I scoffed when the nutritionist chimed in and stated that the first thing we did was cut out all the rubbish, simple stuff like reducing caffine, cutting out fizzy drinks (yeah yeah) and fruit juices (hang on!?). He then said, "we also cut out breakfast foods such as cereals and moved to oats and that these so-called 'low-fat' marked supermarket foods are just full of chemicals and sugar. (oh!?)

I thought cutting out toast for cornflakes or weetabix etc would be a wise move and within reason, any form of fruit juice would have obvious vitamin benefits? I guess it shows how wrong I am with the basics of sports nutrition even at basic breakfast time. :oops:

Can anyone recommend a free simple online weekly plan or something similar that would perhaps offer a nice balance of the complex carbs, vitamins and nutrients you would need to help improve your overall energy levels and general well-being? If I've got breakfast wrong, then It's likely I've got a lot of other meals wrong too. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to be following an olympic diet regime, I just need pointing in the right direction.

I know a food diary can be a good idea too.

Thanks for any advice!

mattshrops

Sorry cant link to the online thingy.

Breakfast-porridge(oats like the article) with honey
Fruit juice is fairly empty sugar. fruit is best, or if you must fruit juice with bits.

I guess google some nutrition topics?

klep

Packaged and processed foods are no-go. If you keep that in mind, the rest doesnt matter. (Assuming you dont want a strict diet but just try to healthen up your current one)

Amoger

Fruit juice (& fruit itself of course) has a large amount of sugar, even if it's fructose rather than the processed stuff. Not to be avoided (unlike refined sugar) but just eaten in moderation.

Breakfast cereal industry has done a great job of marketing itself as "healthy" - you think having branflakes rather than Coco Pops means you're being healthy, yet they're c.17% SUGAR. Basically they take a raw material, be it maize, wheat, rice, process it to the nth degree, then spray a vitamin concoction over it, and add a large amount of sugar.

I'm all for "in moderation" though, & writing this as I'm about to tuck into my Weetabix.

styxd

Packaged and processed foods are no-go. If you keep that in mind, the rest doesnt matter.

Exactly.

I dont know why people are so stupid when it comes to food.

Just make everything yourself, then you know whats in it so you'll know if its healthy or not!

team47b

Here's an example of a meal plan, chosen at random from google, seems fairly sensible and may help you to devise your own plan. Assumes that you are neither vegetarian nor diabetic.

http://www.fitnesslynn.com/mealpln2.htm

Also have a look at the Glycemic index (GI) gives you a clear picture about complex carbs etc. Australia are the experts here.

http://www.glycemicindex.com/

(Fruit juice contains 25% more sugar than the original fruit, lacks nutrients from the skin and doesn't contain the fibre. Fibre slows down the sugar spike, so fruit for slow release energy, fruit juice for instant energy)

CRAIGO5000

Thanks very much guys for the replies!

The information provided has given me the insight to start making some quite drastic changes. I always thought I ate quite healthily as a cyclist, but it seems I've mislead myself.

I'm going to make some diet changes and see what the results yield over the next few weeks.

Thanks again!

klep

Good luck and keep us posted

phreak

I've got this book and it has some decent recipes in it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, pudding and snacks.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Go-Faster-Food- ... =8-2-fkmr0

I've found keeping a diary of what you eat and how much you burn helps you keep track. I don't measure things religiously but it helps provide a rough idea.

t.m.h.n.e.t

Cornflakes don't grow in the shape they fall out of the packet in - Oats are generally rolled and bagged

Processing of food is more often about adding flavourings and preservatives.

Fruit is not the devil but fruit juice unless you freshly squeeze it is.

Fat is not the enemy,it doesn't make you fat: Being greedy and lazy does that.