NUTRITION

No matter how hard you train, you won't achieve the results you want if you live on ice cream and chips. Fuel your workouts and maximise your muscle-building and fat-loss efforts with our straightforward advice and inspiring meal plans

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WORKOUT 101

Healthy eating doesn’t need to be complicated, provided you follow these simple guidelines

Eat real food

The best rule of thumb is to only eat food that grows out of the ground or once had a face - do this and you'll find it difficult to go wrong. By avoiding heavily processed and prepackaged food, you'll also miss out on unwanted chemicals and added salt or sugar.

Eat more greens

Vegetables should be the foundation of your diet - try to eat green, fibrous veg with as many meals as possible. Apart from being packed with antioxidants and essential vitamins and minerals, vegetables are fibrous and filling, which will help you to feel full long after you've finished eating.

Eat protein with everything

This may seem counterintuitive for fat loss, but protein is filling, which means you'll get hungry less often, and it also has a mild thermogenic effect. Eat protein-rich foods such as meat, fish or eggs with every meal. You should aim for roughly 2g per kilo of your target bodyweight per day. If you want to keep things simple, aim to eat a 20-25g serving of protein with every meal - including breakfast - and add an extra post-workout serving on training days.

Don’t be afraid of fat

Fat doesn’t make you fat - as long as you're eating the right kind. Stick to meat, avocado and nuts, but avoid the hydrogenated and trans fats found in cakes, biscuits and other processed food. Good fats play a key role in everything from energy expenditure to producing testosterone, and trying to avoid them entirely will throw your training into a downward spiral.