A workout that uses drills to help you focus on key areas, helping you to improve your overall technique.
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Anita is an award-winning nutritionist and health writer, specialising in sport and exercise nutrition for swimmers to achieve their goals. Anita has created some nutritious, tasty and easy to make recipes that will boost your energy and help you get the most out of your day.
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Here’s a delicious, perfectly balanced breakfast that’s rich in protein, monounsaturated fats, carbohydrate and fibre. It’s also a good way of getting your iron. Jazz it up with any of the suggested toppings.
COOK 4 mins PREP 3 mins SERVES 1
1 egg
1 slice wholegrain or sourdough bread
1⁄2 avocado
sea salt akes and freshly ground black pepper
pinch fresh or dried herbs (parsley, thyme or basil)
optional toppings: pinch red chilli flakes; few cherry tomatoes, halved
1. Bring a pan of water to the boil. Crack an egg into a cup, then slip it into the water. Alternatively, crack the egg into a silicone egg poacher and place this in the boiling water. Reduce the heat and poach for about 4 minutes until the white is just set.
2. While the egg is cooking, toast the bread. Using a fork, roughly mash the avocado on the toast. When the egg is cooked, use a slotted spoon to lift it out of the water and place on top of the toast. Sprinkle with salt, freshly ground black pepper, herbs and chilli flakes (if using) and scatter over the tomatoes (if using).
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This protein-packed salad is a tasty way of adding beetroot to your diet. Beetroot increases the body’s levels of nitric oxide, which helps improve blood flow and oxygen delivery to the muscles during aerobic exercise.
COOK 8 mins PREP 10 mins SERVES 2 FOR THE SALAD
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp light olive or rapeseed oil
2 small skinless, boneless chicken breasts
250g pack cooked quinoa (or any other mixture of wholegrains)
4 spring onions, sliced
2 medium cooked beetroots, quartered
handful baby spinach
6 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp cashews, toasted and roughly chopped
FOR THE DRESSING
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 small garlic clove, crushed
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Start by making the salad. Combine the paprika and half the oil in a small bowl. Rub the mixture over the chicken. Heat the remaining oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and cook the chicken breasts for 6-8 minutes each side or until cooked through. Allow to cool, then cut into slices.
2. To make the dressing, shake the dressing ingredients together in a screw-top jar or bottle, then season to taste.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the quinoa, spring onion, beetroot, spinach and tomatoes. Divide between two bowls, sprinkle with the cashews and top with the sliced chicken. Drizzle over the dressing.
MAKE IT VEGETARIAN Substitute a poached egg for the chicken
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This easy-to-make vegetarian curry is delicious, highly nutritious and comforting. It provides plenty of protein and fibre, along with beta-carotene from the sweet potato and vitamin C, folate and cancerprotective phytonutrients from the mangetout. The cashews add iron and heart-healthy unsaturated fats.
COOK 45 mins PREP 10 mins SERVES 2
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
1⁄4 butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2cm chunks
salt, to season
2 tbsp light olive oil or rapeseed oil
1 small onion, nely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
½ red chilli (or to taste), finely chopped (optional)
1 tbsp mild curry paste, or according to taste
½ x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
400g tin black beans, drained and rinsed
250ml hot water
50g mangetout
handful cashews and fresh coriander leaves, chopped
SERVE WITH 4 tbsp plain low-fat Greek yogurt
1. Preheat the oven to 200 ̊C (fan 180), gas mark 6. Place the sweet potato and butternut squash in a large roasting tin. Season with a little salt, drizzle over half the oil and toss lightly so the vegetables are coated. Roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes until slightly charred on the outside and tender in the middle.
2. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a large heavy-based pan, add the onion and fry over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, chilli (if using) and curry paste and cook for a further minute.
3. Add the tomatoes, beans and hot water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add the mangetout and roasted vegetables and simmer for a further 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat, season with salt and stir in the cashews and coriander. Serve topped with the yogurt.
Photography by Anita Bean
These tasty bars are great for fuelling before or after your swim. As they’re made with just three main ingredients – dates, nuts and cocoa – they’re easy to make and have more fibre, essential fats, B vitamins, iron, magnesium and zinc than commercial bars.
PREP 10 mins, plus 1hr chilling MAKES 16 BARS
FOUNDATION/ BEGINNER 15g almonds and 1 clementine
(INTERMEDIATE AND ADVANCED 15g almonds and 1 clementine 1 x cocoa energy bar (see recipe)
250g ready-to-eat soft dates or Medjool dates*
250g ground almonds
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
25g dark chocolate chips
*Or use standard dried dates: leave them to soak in boiling water for 10-15 minutes, then drain
1. Put the dates, almonds, cocoa powder and vanilla extract in a food processor or high-power blender and blend for about 1 minute until crumbly and evenly combined. You may need to stop the motor and scrape down the edges of the bowl once or twice. Add 2-3 tbsp of water if the dates are quite hard and don’t break down readily. Add the chocolate chips and pulse until the ingredients clump together and form a ball.
2. Press or roll the mixture between two sheets of baking parchment or cling film to a 1cm thickness. Alternatively, you can press it into an 18cm x 18cm baking tin lined with cling film. Put in the fridge for 1 hour or so until firm, then peel off the parchment and cut into bars, about 10cm x 2cm.
3. Wrap each bar in cling film or foil. They will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months.