We are now well and truly into the second month of the year and if you have managed to stick to the health goals you set at the beginning of 2018, a huge congratulations to you! Alternatively, if the demands of life have made it hard for you to stick to your goals, here are 5 pieces of advice to help you stay on track.
- Revise your goals
If it’s been sometime since you sat down and revised your goals and any progress made, now is the time to do it! If the goals you originally set, no longer serve your values, then modify them to suit. It is also a good time to give yourself a pat on the back for any achievements made and make sure to use this insight as motivation to keep going.
- Get inspired
When we feel bored by our routine, we lose motivation and things start to fall by the wayside. Get excited by food and exercise again. This can be as simple as buying a few new ingredients each week and experimenting in the kitchen, getting out an old cookbook and selecting 1-2 meals to cook each week or signing up for a new gym class with a friend. I encourage you to step outside of your comfort zone and keep your passion for health alive.
- Keep a food diary
At the beginning of the year, prior to setting goals, I recommended keeping a food diary to enable you to assess where your diet may be lacking. If you haven’t kept one along the way, now is the time to start up again. Keep a diary for 1-2 weeks and review it to see what changes can be made to make sure your diet is working for you.
- Socialise healthily
Frequent socialising can impact our ability to stay on track especially when we aren’t in control of our food and drink choices. If you feel a few too many nights out have impacted your progress, take control of your social life and suggest some healthier alternatives. For example, meet up for brunch instead of drinks and dinner or invite friends on a walk instead of drinks at bar.
- Be organised
As exhausted as you may be during the week, preparing a meal to have on hand will make a huge difference. This can be as simple as roasting meat to add to sandwiches, roasting a tray of vegetables or cooking a batch of porridge. If looking for some healthy inspiration, try my gluten-free almond, leek and ricotta tart. This tart can be eaten for breakfast, snacks or warmed up and served alongside salad for lunch or dinner.
Gluten-free Almond, Leek and Ricotta Tart
Serves: 4-6
Prep: 10-15 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
8 free-range eggs
1 leek, outer layers removed, washed and finely chopped
1½ cup fresh green peas
1 zucchini, grated (squeezed out extra water)
1 clove of garlic, crushed
200g fresh ricotta cheese
50g parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup flat leave parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cut basil, finely chopped
3/4 cup almond meal
Sea salt and pepper for seasoning
Method:
- Pre-heat the over to 180C. Brush oil on individual tart tins and place on a baking tray. You can also use muffin tins.
- In a large frying pan, add a little olive oil, sauté the leek and garlic, till translucent, approx. 5 minutes on a medium heat. Sauté the remaining vegetables for 5 minutes on a medium heat, leave to cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the mix the eggs and then add the ricotta, almond meal and Parmesan, gently folding. Fold through the cooled vegetable mixing and the herbs.
- Pour the mixture into individual tart tins and cook in the oven for 15 minutes. Test with skewer to see if it’s ready, it should be clean and the top of the tart should be a golden colour.
- Once cooked leave to cool and then serve a slice with a green salad.
