Hi all,
It's no secret - I eat a lot. Ask my mum or my family, friends, acquaintances, house mates, colleagues, even strangers, and they'll attest to the same thing. In the past, I always thought that no matter what I eat and how much I eat, and still not gain weight or get fat as a result, I must be blessed with a very fast metabolism. So I've been happy consuming food at quite scary amounts. And being a runner does contribute to this, considering the high demand for the number of calories.
But it struck me that while I eat a lot of food, a substantial amount of this is bad food that could be avoided. One day I'd have a healthy meal, only to undo the good work by eating fast food the next day. Some rice, vegetables and grilled salmon on one day, then KFC and chips the next. I enjoy eating and splurging out, but as a runner now picking up the effort, I'm now starting to reign in on my eating urges, and looking for new and better things to consume.
Earlier I blogged that in training you should make every mile count. Kate Percy, an author, writer, food enthusiast, and marathon runner that I follow on Twitter, said that you should make every mouthful count, i.e. make sure each mouthful is nutritious. In my own words, a runner's body is like a high performance sports car, which needs high quality fuel constantly. Give it bad quality fuel, and you'd expect the car to perform poorly. I recently bought Kate's book on Amazon, Go Faster Food, to check out the 100+ recipes designed to help endurance, performance and recovery. I also want to start eating a broader range of healthy foods, and also have the experience to cook these meals on my own in my kitchen. Incidentally, Kate is writing a new book, Go Faster Food for Kids, so for all those parents wanting to groom their children into marathon running at a young age, buy Kate's book when it comes out!
So what have I changed with regards to my eating? For a start, I've been cooking all my meals from scratch. It saves money and I know exactly what's in them. This includes lunches and dinners, where I try to prepare lunch the night before and cook dinners in bulk which will last me 2-3 days.
For lunches, instead of eating pasties, curries and burgers like I usually did back in the UK, I've started making my own sandwiches and, if I've got time, Mexican burritos filled with tomato, lettuce, cheese and meat. Gone are the days where I would hop to the nearest outlet and buy whatever looks good in the shop. Occasionally I'd go out for Friday lunches with the colleagues, but as Friday is paella day I know that paella is very nutritious with plenty of fresh seafood, so I always look forward to Friday lunches.
For dinners, I've been cooking larger meals in bulk, which will last me 2-3 days. The leftovers can be easily warmed up for tomorrow's dinner or lunch. Sometimes I'd prepare a huge dish of pasta, or roast a big chicken in the oven. If it's not pasta, then it's going to be served with either rice or potatoes.
I've also started to buy food that I normally don't eat. One such example is couscous, which is just as beneficial as rice, if not more, and adds just a little more variety to my meals. Kate's book has many recipes for meals made with couscous. Another example is tomatoes. I've always had a love-hate relationship with tomatoes for some reason, but now I've made a conscious effort to include tomatoes in most of my meals. Let's see what other kinds of foods I'll discover along the way to include with my meals.
I've recently made a conscious effort to eat fish at least twice a week. The problem with fish is that you can't store it for very long; it must be consumed on the day or the day after it was purchased. So far I'm only buying salmon; by far my favourite fish, but hopefully I'll extend this to shellfish and other types of seafood.
Recently, I've been stocking the cupboard full of different types of pasta. Spaghetti, fusilli, tagliatelle, penne, etc. Aside from cooking spaghetti bolognaise, I enjoy baking pasta in the oven. It's quick, easy to do, wholesome and full of nutritional value. You can basically add what you like, which will make the dish a lot more enjoyable.
Consequently, I have not been to a fast food restaurant since I started training to break three hours. And I've hardly had the need to eat out. Long may this last! In the much publicised boxing match between David Tua and Shane Cameron last October, Tua claimed to have not eaten Burger King for the 8 months he spent training for his fight against Shane Cameron. When he knocked out Cameron in the second round, one of the reporters in the press conference asked Tua what he was going to do next. His response was "I'm going to Burger King!" If Tua could abstain from fast food during his training and win in spectacular fashion, I guess I could do that as well!
I've only scratched the surface of Kate's book, and no doubt there will be many meals for high performance that I'll enjoy cooking and eating. Making meals, instead of buying fast food, convenience food, or takeaways, does take more time out of the day, and it can be hard work. However it's very rewarding to cook your own meals, it's healthy, it saves money in the long run, and you'll never know who might just come around to your place for dinner.
Happy eating,
Aaron
