December - Australian Rugby Union

National Performance Nutrition Newsletter December 2011 Rugby Grub ‐ Issue [8] SURVIVING THE CHRISTMAS BREAK Inside…  Christmas… surviving the break  Rugby Grub…Protein Pumped Pancakes  What’s he eating… James Horwill  Guru Goss… we answer all your nutrition questions. Got a question, forward it to us at… gary.slater@rugby.com.au 
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Follow us on Twitter… @OZRugbyGrub Kelly, Kate, Christine, Sophy & Gary The Christmas break is a great time to catch up with family and friends, with food and drinks an important lubricant to these social engagements. While there’s no expectation that you’ll be a saint over the break, letting things slip just isn’t an option given how close the start of the Super 15 season is. With this in mind, throw our 10 commandments of Christmas on the fridge & be good because Santa knows who’s been good & who’s been bad… 1. Keep training… fitness traits like your elevated blood volume can start backing off in just 3‐4 days on inactivity. You’ll have a program to follow, please stick with it. This will not only help when you start back with your rugby program in but it’ll also keep your metabolic rate up, burning through those few extras that are inevitable around this time of year. 2. If you do overindulge… walk it off. New research suggests taking a long walk in the back end of the day can help prevent unwanted weight gain. This may be particularly important Christmas Day…round up the family & keep active. 3. Start lunch & dinner with a plate of veggies or salad… this takes the edge off your appetite and gives your ‘I’m full sensors’ to kick in. Just don’t lather up your salads with heaps of high fat extras like dressings and mayo (there’s a heap of low fat varieties available) or high fat cheeses. 4. Include heaps of water or diet cordials/ soft drinks with your meals. It’ll not only help maintain your hydration status but also knock the edge off your appetite but you’ll need to get plenty in at the start of the meal, not the back end. 5. Eat to your needs… if the training load has backed off, so should your intake of fuel foods. It’s not a case of cutting the carbs out because they are great at helping to make you feel fuller, just moderate the space on your plate for the carbs & fill the gap with extra veggies or salad. Rugby Grub ‐ Issue [8]
December 2011
Take Home Tip… The Christmas break can be a bit of a double whammy... reduced training loads & ready access to high calorie foods. Stay focused on your goals for the season ahead. Celebrate with your family & friends on Christmas day but outside of this, use the 10 tips below to help you get through the Christmas break unscathed. There just isn’t the time after the break to make up for letting yourself go. SURVIVING THE CHRISTMAS BREAK… 6. Include a small hit of protein rich food with each meal & snack to help fill you up. Remember it’s about quality, not quantity… focus on skinless breast meat from a chicken or turkey, fat trimmed ham or a lean steak or seafood at a BBQ, low fat milk on cereal with yoghurt or a few poached eggs with spinach & mushrooms at breaky. 7. Use your dial… eat when you are hungry, not out of habit or boredom. There should be plenty of other things to keep you occupied… there’s a ton to be made in backyard cricket with the family or barrels to be had on the new surfboard/ boogie board. 8. Make the most of the amazing fruit in season… stone fruit, melons, mango’s. Fruit should be a focus at mid meal snacks or dessert over the break, it’s low calorie but tastes so good. Enjoy! 9. Remember it’s the alcohol in drinks which packs a punch calorie wise. You’re kidding yourself if you think low carb beers are a winner. Rather (& if you choose to drink), focus on plenty of alcohol free days during the break & moderate your intake when you choose to drink. There’s really no major issue with 3‐4 beers a few times over the break. It’s when you have a bender that things (including your waistline) can get out of hand. Use the drinks guide below to assist. 10. If you are trying to pack on some quality lean, make use of the break to buff up for summer. You won’t get another opportunity like this where you can go into a lifting session fresh, without carrying over fatigue from a fitness session. Just remember though that you get big in the pantry, not the gym so be prepared to feed those muscles for the next 1‐2 days. Drinks 
Beer reduced alcohol beer not only helps keep you under the legal limit it’ll save you on calories/ kilojoules as well. While one full strength stubby has 590 kJ, a light carries just 430 kJ. Not much of a difference in just one stubby but added up over a 6 pack you’d be saving almost 1000 kJ (i.e. a cheeseburger) 
Spirits while most spirits have similar energy contents, it’s the choice of mixer that can make a real difference. Get through 4 or 5 mixed drinks with orange juice or soft drink and you’ve managed to get through upwards of a litre of juice or soft drink. Move to a diet mixer over 4 drinks and you’ve saved yourself ~1000 kJ (i.e. a cheeseburger) 
Wine It might have some antioxidants but each glass of wine also carries plenty of calories. The wine also goes down pretty easy…before you know it, you’re through a bottle and searching for more Rugby Grub ‐ Issue [8]
December 2011
BULKING BREAKIES… In recent editions of Rugby Grub we’ve spoken about the value of including small amounts of protein (30‐23g) at meals & snacks throughout the day rather than the traditional Aussie approach where the majority of daily protein intake occurs at dinner and to a lesser extent at lunch. The following recipes help to prevent this by getting you off to a great start with a range of protein packed breaky ideas that go beyond the traditional poached eggs (7g protein each). PROTEIN PUMPED PANCAKES Ingredients (serves 1)  5 egg whites (or 175g Zeagold egg whites from freezer section of supermarket)  ¾ cup quick oats  1 teaspoon vanilla essence  ½ teaspoon cinnamon  Pinch of baking powder  Cooking spray  Maple syrup Method 1. Combine the egg whites, oats, vanilla essence, cinnamon and baking powder in a bowl until well‐mixed 2. Heat a pan over medium high heat. After about a minute, spray with cooking spray. Wait a minute longer and test the pan; if a drop of water sizzles on it, it is ready. 3. Add the batter, 1/2 cup per pancake. Allow to cook for 3‐4 minutes. Once bubbles begin to form in the batter, check the bottom of the pancake and flip when it is golden brown. 4. Cook for about three more minutes on the other side, checking to make sure the pancakes do not burn. 5. Transfer the pancakes to a plate, and an enjoy a protein pumped pancake with maple syrup 2200 kJ/ 27g Protein/ 80g Carbohydrate/ 10g Fat Female (mum/ wife/ partner/ potential girlfriend) Impact Factor:  BIRCHER MUESLI Ingredients (serves 4)  2 cups rolled oats  ½ cup chopped dried apricots  1 cup orange juice  1 ½ cups evaporated skim milk  1 cup low fat vanilla yogurt plus extra, to serve  1/3 cup chopped nuts (such as hazelnuts and sliced almonds)  1 apple, grated honey, to taste  Berries (fresh or frozen) to serve Method 1. Combine oats, apricots, orange juice, milk, yogurt, nuts and apple, cover and refrigerate overnight. 2. Before serving, add honey, to taste. Serve with berries and extra yogurt 2000 kJ/ 22g Protein/ 70g Carbohydrate/ 10g Fat Female (mum/ wife/ partner/ potential girlfriend) Impact Factor:  Boosting the protein content of typical breaky fair is easy. Try the following ideas for an extra protein boost...  Breakfast Cereal ‐ Back off your cereal serve ½ a cup, replacing this with 200g tub of yoghurt (10g protein).  Toast ‐ Add 2 Tbsp of Extra Light Philly cream cheese spread to each slice of toast (5g protein) or substitute your cup of tea for a glass of low fat milk (10g protein). Rugby Grub ‐ Issue [8]
December 2011
WHAT’S HE EATING... Each month we’ll start taking a closer look at what Australia’s best rugby athletes do with their meal plan to help support their rugby goals. This month we start at the top... QLD Reds & Wallabies Captain, James (Big Kev) Horwill. 1. What’s the most important nutrition tip you’ve been given during your rugby career? Plan your meals in advance so you take notice of training/playing loads & eat accordingly. On heavy loading days I make sure I put more into the petrol tank & conversely, on lighter loading or non‐training days I back off the amount of fuel foods I consume. Part of this achieved by making sure I always include pre & post training snacks. Outside of this I’ll tweak the amount of carbs and veggies I put on my plate. 2. How has your eating and drinking changed since you were playing rugby at school? It has changed dramatically. I take notice of what I eat and drink and always try and plan for what my training goals are and eat accordingly to best assist that. 3. Favourite breakfast during training day? I like cereal, usually Weet‐Bix or muesli, with low fat yoghurt and honey. It’s a great carb hit to start the day, plus I get some good protein from the milk & yoghurt. 4. Favourite lunch during training day? Sandwiches are always good with some form of lean meat and plenty of salad. Plus I can pretty much get a good sandwich no matter where I am... at home, on the run or when eating at the team hotel. Change the meat, salad veggies and spread (chutney, relish, mustard) around and I’ve got all the variety I need. 5. Favourite dinner during training? Depending on the next day’s load but a Moroccan lamb with couscous and salad I always enjoy. Mums recipe. ED NOTE: Will mum give us a copy you think for the next edition of rugby grub? 6. Favourite post‐training snack? Muesli bars or some fruit are usually what I like to refuel. The muesli bars don’t go off so they are always a safe option in my training bag. I’ll match this with a hit of protein as well, either a shake or flavoured milk or 1‐2 tubs of yoghurt. 7. What’s your favourite meal on the run (i.e. when eating outside the home)? Subway is always good on the go cause you can pick and choose what you want. Nando’s as well is good. ED NOTE: We will be reviewing a range of outlets in coming editions, including both Subway & Nando’s so you can make an informed decision when dining out 8. If you were really trying to impress a woman with a home cooked meal, what would you whip up? Moroccan lamb for dinner or scrambled eggs for breakfast 9. Favourite pre‐game meal? Pancakes with banana. Plenty of carbs and sits well in the guts 10. Water or sports drink during a game? Bit of both, on field I prefer water cause sports drink can make me feel a bit crook. But I try and get through a bottle of Gatorade at half time. Thanks for your time big man. Rugby Grub ‐ Issue [8]
December 2011
GURU GOSS… ANSWERING YOUR NUTRITION CONCERNS “I was told to cut dairy foods from my diet to help reduce mucous production. What can I use instead of milk? Dairy foods are excellent sources of vitamins and minerals, especially calcium, as well as providing valuable amounts of high quality protein & carbs (except cheese). Dairy foods are thought to be protective against osteoporosis, colon cancer, high blood pressure & obesity. As such, it’s important to know if we really need to eliminate dairy foods from your diet. Some individuals suffer from a dairy protein allergy & they must avoid diary foods, using calcium fortified soy milks, cheeses & yoghurts as alternatives. Others may experience bloating, excessive farting or diarrhoea with moderate to large amounts of milk ingestion. This is known as lactose intolerance, where the body lacks the enzyme required to break down milk sugar (lactose). Generally these people can tolerate small amounts of milk & yoghurt, with hard cheeses well tolerated. Calcium fortified soy milks (soy is not naturally high in calcium) or special milks with the lactase enzyme added (Zymil) can be used as an alternative to milk in this situation. If you do not have a dairy allergy or lactose intolerance (your doctor can help clarify this) I’m happy to tell you that there is no reason why you can’t continue to enjoy dairy foods. Despite many people believing that dairy foods increase mucous production, there just isn’t any science to support this belief. They are such nutritious foods; it’s a shame to have you avoid them if you don’t need to. “I’ve heard it’s best to avoid carbs after noon if I’m interested in reducing my skinnies. I’ve had a crack at sticking with this but get super hungry at night and I don’t seem to have any energy during afternoon training” Seems like you may be suffering from carbophobia, an increasingly common symptom of athletes & others within society blaming carbs for their body fat. Reality is, fat loss or gain comes down to a balance of calories in (from food) against calories out (from training & other activities) so focusing on just one energy source in the meal plan defies common logic. What’s more, avoiding carbs before & after your training reduces carbohydrate availability at the most important time of the day for you. Want more evidence against this theory... a recent study compared consuming carbs throughout the day versus taking the same amount of carbs at night. They found when carbs were taken at night, folks responded better. Take home message... adjust your carb intake according to your training loads with more on heavy loading days while moderating intake on lighter or non training days. Perhaps most importantly, always take a pre & post training snack/ meal rich in carbs, it gets fuel to the muscles when they need it most. SOURCING REPUTABLE PERFORMANCE NUTRITION INFO… APPS & TWITTER There’s such an amazing array of nutrition information available these days through both traditional means like books, magazines & newsletters but newer technologies like the internet and associated mediums like Facebook & Twitter. Sometimes, the more you look, the more confused you become as messages can contradict each other. The key is finding reputable sources of info (just like this newsletter). For those interested in Twitter feeds, we’re now tweeting from @OZRugbyGrub. Smart phone apps are another great way of sourcing reputable sources of nutrition info on the run. Check these out…  Calorie King ‐ Contains nutrition information on >22000 Australian foods, including fat food & restaurants; free.  Traffic Light Food Tracker ‐ A no nonsense tool for helping identify the nutritional value of a food based on its fat, sugar & salt content; free.  Taste Best of Winter & Taste Best of Summer ‐ When you are short on inspiration for what to cook tonight, the taste series of apps help guide you through the huge database of recipes. Got any other app’s or individuals/ groups worth following on Twitter, email us at gary.slater@rugby.com.au