Live Well
What ’ s in a Label ? By Jo Hill
Here ’ s what you need to know about nutritional labels on the food you buy in the store .
Nutritional labels can be an overthinkers nightmare . Every packaged food item has one , but where do we start when it comes to understanding what those labels are telling us ? We all know that we need to be mindful of what we consume , but when food labels are so confusing , it can be downright daunting !
I ’ ve written this in the hopes of taking that daunting feeling away , because once you understand how to read the nutritional labels on the foods that you are eating , you will be able to make better choices , and quite honestly , you will never look back .
having a look at the protein , carbs and fats per serving , bearing in mind that 1 gram of protein is 4 calories , 1 gram of carbs is 4 calories , and 1 gram of fat is 9 calories .
The reason that maths may come into play is that some labels are incorrect , and will say something is 100 calories , but also that it contains 16 grams of protein , 10 grams of carbs and 9 grams of fat ... That just doesn ’ t add up – it should actually be 185 calories , in this example – so I strongly suggest you double-check . Often if something seems too good to be true , it sadly is . A friend once showed me a label on a champagne bottle that claimed to only contain protein ... If only !
So let ’ s start by trying to keep things simple : Eating less and being consistent in the gym will probably give you some good results , but if you want to keep those results coming – and understand the ‘ science ’ behind what you are eating – then knowing how to read a nutritional label is pretty important .
Know What to Look For
The first thing you need to pay attention to is the serving size . It ’ s normally found right at the top of the label and helps you to estimate how much to eat . ( You may need to weigh or portion the food out .) I then recommend you paying attention to the macros ( macronutrients ). This means
The last thing to pay attention to is the ingredients . The list of ingredients always appear in the order that they are used most , so for example , if you are buying something that says it has fruit in it , then the first thing you want to see on your ingredients list is a piece of fruit . I often see sugar listed as the first ingredient , and that ’ s something I encourage you to avoid . Another example could be buying a nut butter that doesn ’ t list nuts first .
Healthy Habit
I think it ’ s really important that we become conscious about what we are fuelling our bodies with . I know some people say it ’ s excessive , even obsessive , but rather that than feeling the need to crash diet , or worse , take a product you can ’ t buy from the pharmacy to get the results you are wanting … if you know what I mean . Lastly , remember that following a healthy lifestyle is a marathon , not a sprint , and you need to be prepared for a long journey .
Jo Hill is a Durban-based baking enthusiast with two selfconfessed addictions : Fitness and chocolate . She has made it her mission in life to show the world that it is possible to have the best of both worlds . The popularity of her healthy recipes led to her creating her popular Facebook page and blog called Pull ups and Peanut butter , where she shares her recipes for clean , healthy and diet-friendly treats . More info at www . pullupsandpeanutbutter . co . za
Fatigue-Beating Fixes
Here are some reasons why you might be feeling run down – and how you can remedy the problem with some relatively simple fixes .
1 Too much for too long : The risk of starting the build phase way too early for a target race is that the body simply cannot handle this training volume and intensity for that long , and the result is getting to the race feeling wiped out and lacking motivation to race .
Solution : Give yourself a few full rest days and then get back to training with a few shorter runs , including a few change-ups in pace toward the end or after the run . This will give your legs the recovery needed and bring back a lighter , springy feeling .
2 Burning the candle at both ends : We live extremely busy lives and struggle to fit everything in , but after only four or five hours of sleep , we ’ re pounding out mileage again . What we don ’ t realise is that it ’ s not only our legs that fatigue , but also our central nervous system , which means that our immune system takes a knock and our risk for illness increases .
Solution : Slow things down and cut back on commitments . There ’ ll be plenty of time for socialising after the race . Work commitments are a little trickier , but try and limit your amount of overtime . Unfortunately , in cases where you simply cannot change your work situation , you ’ re going to have to scale back a little on the training .
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