Food - The necessity we dont have time for

We all need to eat. That's one of life's many demands that is a constant. However, we all have busy lives that don't allow the time to prepare, cook, and consume the fancy "restaurant" meals that we see in recipe books, online, or on social media. So here is a dive into what we should be eating leading up to an event or a big ride but also some quick and easy recipes that are simple but effective.

Carb loading

I went into a lot more detail on this in another blog earlier in the year, but basically, carb loading is ensuring the days leading up to an endurance (anything over 90 minutes) event to ensure that your bodies glycogen stores as as full as it can be and ready to fuel to muscles and the body.

This is not a case of cramming in rice, potatoes, bread, and carbohydrate powder left right, and centre the day before a ride. It's about keeping it balanced the week leading to the event and easing off on the intensity of exercise as you increase the carbohydrate intake.

But what should we be eating then and when?

3-4 days before the event you want to be building the carbohydrate intake gradually at the same time as easing off the exercise with the final 2 days not doing any exercise other than gentle walking etc. This can be in the case of adding eggs for protein build-up to your breakfast with toast. Adding rice, pasta, or pulses into salads, or replace fatty carbs like chips with rice or new potatoes. The general idea is that you increase the carbohydrate value per dish throughout the day meaning your body can still process and digest the extra carbohydrate.

I don't have time to make extra components for meals as tight on time as it is!

This is the big thing with food and meals for "athletes" and sports people. Because fuelling for the ride, run, or event you are doing is going to be the biggest performance benefit you can do. This is where it helps to have a plan or a routine. Companies like Gusto or Hello Fresh give the best way to cut down on prep time or time of thinking of what you want to eat or cook, but they have their limitations in that they are designed for the general public and not tailored for performance. Not unless you want to have the fastest school run.

But if you have the time to spend 20-30 minutes to plan your week for the main meals that will make life easier. Batch cooking is another great way to do multiple meals at once, for example I will cook down 2/3 of onions, some peppers, and mushrooms, split that between 2/3 pans and add chicken to one, meatballs to another, and then mince beef to another and add relevant sauces to each and then I have 3x Spaghetti Bolognaise base, 3x Pasta Meatball base and 3x Sweet and sour chicken base. Portion these down into tubs and freeze, then when it comes to dinner times just defrost and cook some pasta or rice and dinner is ready in a fraction of the time it would take to make all in one hit.

Preparation for the future can be a real time saver, making 2 or 3 portions of pasta salad at a time, or cold rice boxes with chicken and vegetables in them are all meals that can be made and kept in the fridge ready to eat, you can take with you to work and eat when you can and the carbohydrate intake is much more than it would be in a packed lunch or meal deal. Even meals like risotto or braised rice, make these and portion them down and freeze, defrost the day before, and heat in the microwave and you have dinner in 3-5 minutes. It's about working and planning smart.

Recipes:

You chuck into Google "quick and simple meals" and you will be bombarded with pages upon pages of recipes from good food, Jamie Oliver, and the next gym or exercise diet fad. Now, I'm not saying these aren't good or don't work, because most of them do but the point of this is to reduce time, and sitting through websites is not going to help that, so below I have done a few of my go-to recipes, starting simple with a little note at the bottom on how to adapt them for the days leading up to an event.

Breakfast:

Eggs on toast - Poached or scrambled eggs, brown toast, or sourdough.

Boiling water with a splash of white wine vinegar and salt, stir the water and add an egg for 3 Minutes.

Overnight oats / Oat pots - Can flavour with whatever you like, berries, cinnamon, or fruit and nuts.

150g Oats, 200g Natural Yoghurt, Handful of berries, Sprinkle of mixed spice. *Optional - add granola.

Add everything together and stir, leave in the fridge overnight.

Granola / Breakfast flapjack.

100g Butter, 200g Oats, 100g Sunflower seeds, 50 sesame seeds, 50g walnuts, 3 Tbsp honey, 100g light brown sugar, 1 Tsp cinnamon, 100g Dried cranberries, cherries, and/or blueberries.

Melt the butter, honey and sugar. Mix other ingredients and add the butter mix. Press into a lined tray and bake at 180 for 30 Minutes.

Lunch:

Pasta salad - Vegetarian or meat-based you can load up with nuts, pesto, vegetables, and pulses. Hot or cold this is something that you can have ready to go and fuels the day with slow-release carbohydrates.

200g Pasta, 75g Cooked chicken breast, 2 Peppers, 1 onion, 4 Button mushrooms, 2 Tbsp pesto.

Cook pasta in boiling water with salt and oil. Dice and cook the peppers, onion, and mushrooms, and add the cooked chicken and pesto. Add to the cooked pasta and portion and store in the fridge,

Rice box - Rice, vegetables, and/or meat. Carbohydrates galore but containing more than a 'heavy in the stomach' feeling load of carbs.

Same as the pasta salad but with rice. For full benefit use wholegrain, brown or wild rice. Can also add cous cous or lentils.

Fritatta - Simple and quick to prepare. Can be portioned and frozen. Portions defrosted as and when needed.

6 Eggs, 1 Onion, 500g spinach, 4 New potatoes, 75g Chopped ham, 6 Button Mushrooms.

Dice and cook the onion and mushrooms. Add the spinach and ham. Slice the new potatoes add to the mix and pour into a lined tray. Blend the eggs add to the mix and bake at 180 for 15-20 Minutes till set and cooked.

Dinner..... Not tea time it’s dinner:

For the majority of people, this is the main meal of the day, whether that's post-work or post-school run, etc. But that doesn't mean it has to be home and in the kitchen all night. These can be prepared in advance or batch-cooked and frozen as explained above.

Sweet and sour chicken and rice:

1 chicken breast - diced and cooked, 1 Onion, 2 Peppers, 6 Button mushrooms, 1 Jar sweet and sour sauce, 200ml Red wine

Dice and cook the peppers, onion, and mushrooms. Add red wine and reduce, add the chicken and sauce. Serve with cooked rice - For more benefit use wild rice or brown rice.

Spaghetti Bolognaise:

300g Minced beef, 1 Onion, 2 Peppers, 6 Button mushrooms, 1 Jar tomato and basil pasta sauce, 200 ml Red Wine.

Dice and cook the peppers, onion, and mushrooms. the Mince beef and cook, add the red wine and reduce, followed by the sauce, and simmer for 5-10 Minutes.

Serve with cooked spaghetti.

Ham, mushroom, and cheese omelettes

Pasta Bake

On Bike snacks:

Rice Cakes:

500g Risotto Rice, 250g Cream Cheese, 1 Tsp Vanilla essence, 1 Tsp cinnamon, 3 Tbsp Caster Sugar, 2 Tsp Honey, 800ml Water.

Wash the rice, then cook in the water with the vanilla, cinnamon, sugar, and honey. Bring to the boil and simmer with a lid on for 10 Minutes. Place into a lined tray. Add the cream cheese and mix. Press flat and place in the fridge to set.

Date, coconut and ginger bars:

500g Medjoul Dates, 400g Raisins, 150g Almonds, 500g Walnuts, 150g Desiccated Coconut, 160g Crystalised / Stem Ginger, 2Tsp Ground Ginger, 1Tsp Turmeric, 6Tsp Ground Cinnamon, 1Tsp Black Pepper, 1Tsp Salt

Blend the dates and raisins to a paste, Mix all other ingredients then mix in the date paste. Press into a tray and chill.

Cinnamon Krispie Cakes:

85g Butter, 450g Marshmallows, 2 Tsp Cinnamon, 800g Rice Crispies.

Melt the marshmallows and butter. Stir in the Rice crispies and cinnamon. Pour into a tray and smooth flat and allow to set at room temperature.