YMCA Healthy Living Magazine, powered by n4 food and health (Summer 2016)

COURTNEY BATES, APD An Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) and Accredited Nutritionist (AN), Courtney Bates ( www.healthybodsnutrition.com.au) works in private practice on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. She is passionate about spreading the latest news about nutrition, dispelling myths, sharing recipes and helping all individuals achieve optimum health through nutritious and delicious food. You can learn more about Courtney at n4foodandhealth.com PLAN. EAT HEALTHILY. REPEAT. Nutrition expert Courtney Bates shares her technique for achieving optimum nutrition. ately, a lot of my clients have been saying how difficult it is to eat healthily during the week when you are busy... right... wrong! L I have been trying to empower a lot of my clients to plan, as being healthy does take planning. Hence the name of this article: ‘Plan. Eat Healthily. Repeat.’ At the end of a long working day, a lot of us would rather put our feet up than don our aprons, which is why so often we tend to fall into the trap of swinging by the local takeaway shop or restaurant. Sunday = Prep Day Sunday is a great time to plan your healthy meals for the week. Good preparation for healthy eating involves meal planning, writing a shopping list, doing the shopping, and some simple preparation work. By committing to preparing your meals on a Sunday, it makes it much easier to eat clean and healthy meals all week. Meal planning doesn’t have to take long, after all, breakfast needn’t change much on a day-to-day basis. It’s also a good idea to jot down your dinner ideas for the week. You can think about things such as: • Meatless Mondays: lentil spaghetti bolognaise • Tuesday: chicken stir-fry with quinoa • Wednesday: omelette • Thursday: grilled salmon with brown rice and green leafy vegetables • Friday: grilled steak, vegetables and sweet potato chips. Write down some healthy lunch ideas as well. This could include: • Mexican wraps with low GI wraps, three-bean mix and salad leaves • Vita Weats with cottage cheese, cucumber and tomato • Leftover chicken stir-fry with quinoa • Boiled egg sandwiches on low GI bread • Quinoa superfood salad with chickpeas. Next, translate your healthy meal list into a shopping list. Remember to try and stay to the outer aisles of the supermarket, where the fresh produce is, and steer clear of the aisles where the processed and packaged foods reside! Sunday Prep Tips Here are some simple prep ideas, to make life easier during the week: • Chop up some carrot, cucumber and celery sticks ready for snacking during the week. • Hard boil eggs ready for a quick protein hit during the week, or to use in egg salad sandwiches. • Cook up a batch of quinoa, let it cool, then divide into individual portions (approximately half a cup for the ladies or one cup for the men), then put in snaplock bags and freeze. • Cook up a batch of low GI brown rice, let it cool, then divide into individual portions approximately half a cup for the ladies or one cup for the men), then put in snaplock bags and freeze. • Make sure you have a few backup bags of frozen fruit and vegetables in the freezer (e.g. frozen mixed vegetables, frozen mixed berries, frozen mango). Desk Drawer Winners Here are some of my favourite stock staple items to keep in the desk drawer at work: • • • • Tinned tuna 125g tins chickpeas, 3-bean mix 125g tins corn kernels 30g pack nuts Remember, the key to success is: Plan. Eat Healthily. Repeat. SUMMER 2016 YMCA HEALTHY LIVING MAGAZINE 5

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