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The 2014 Bendigo Bank Fun Run will be held on Sunday, November 2.
The event provides a great opportunity for locals to get active together.
The lead up to this event can also be used as a platform for implementing healthier lifestyle habits into your daily routine which hopefully you will be able to maintain long term.
It is now just under 12 weeks until the run and over this period we will be providing weekly articles with information and tips for those wishing to improve their dietary habits.
As many of you will have been told before there are many health benefits associated with eating a well-balanced diet such as reducing your risk of certain types of diseases including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and some types of cancer.
In addition to this, eating the right type and quantity of food will provide your body with the fuel it requires to improve your training and performance in the fun run.
There are many ways to eat healthy and also many ways to eat poorly. It’s important to try and find what works for you, as if you try to follow an unrealistic meal plan or one that doesn’t incorporate enough of the food you enjoy, you are unlikely to stick with it for very long.
A well balanced diet should include a variety of vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds, beans and legumes; reduced fat dairy products and/or dairy alternatives; lean meat, poultry and fish; wholegrain breads and cereals.
This style of eating pattern is more likely to provide your body with all of the nutrients that you require and limit your intake of less desirable substances that you don’t.
Remember to keep yourself hydrated and water is the best option.
Now is the perfect time for you to start setting some goals in preparation for the fun run. Think about what you want to achieve and write down some short term and longer term goals.
An example of a short term goal might be to start having one piece of fruit at morning tea each day with the long term goal of having two pieces of fruit daily by the end of the 12 weeks.
Think about the key actions you need to perform to achieve the goals and focus on these.
Although it can be difficult, try to be as consistent as possible with these actions and this will make your long term goals achievable.
Another important step in setting yourself up for success is planning ahead. Organisation is an essential component of making sensible food choices and its importance is often overlooked. Write out a rough plan of your weekly meals and from this develop a grocery list and, most importantly, stick to it.
Planning your meals in advance is a great way to keep you on track, as we all know that spontaneous decisions about what to eat when you’re hungry aren’t always the most rational.
Finally, a positive attitude will take you a long way to achieving your goals. Nobody is perfect and things won’t always go to plan, so prepare for this. We all have good and bad days, but the quicker you can recover from those days and get back on track, the better off you’ll be.
Remember that any improvement is still an improvement, no matter how small, and any positive change you make puts you ahead of where you started.
IMPORTANT NOTE
Please be aware that the presented information may not be suitable for you if you have specific health conditions and you should seek the assistance of an accredited practising dietitian for individualised nutritional advice by clicking here
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