This month’s issue:…
- Greetings
- What’s in Season at the Allotment
- Easy Recipe: Baked Banana
- Resisting Temptation: Don’t Eat 8 Til 8
- Fad or Fab: Bike Odometer
- Article: Lactose, Not for Everybody
- And Finally… Edinburgh Festival of Cycling
Hello healthy people,
Spring has sprung! The lighter evenings are here with us and so too lots of different outdoor activities in Edinburgh. My Healthy Living Yearbook has got a whole host of exercise ideas and I’m pleased that it will be published as an eBook later this year. I’m very happy to be working with a publisher on re-releasing and updating the Healthy Living Yearbook. Consequently I’ll be presenting a workshop at Pulp Fiction Bookshop, Thursday 21 March, on getting published and Guerilla marketing. Book tickets online at www.marketing-your-work.eventbrite.co.uk
What’s in Season at the Allotment
The weeds are starting to grow, the early potatoes are chitting, we are now just waiting for the warmer weather before we can start the serious business of sowing seed. Scotland’s climate is colder than down south, so we don’t start sowing until end of March, some time after our southern counterparts. This year we’ll wait until after our Easter holiday to start sowing, and hope for a drier year. 
Easy Recipe: Baked Banana
Baked banana is one of those recipes that’s so simple, I forget to cook it. It’s a canny way to use up old manky bananas and it makes a sweet treat. Simply slice a banana skin lengthwise along the inside curve, without cutting the flesh. You can either bake it in a 180 degrees oven for ten minutes as is (in its peel), or you can add a sneaky bit of chocolate. Get some good quality dark chocolate and break up 6 small bits, slice the banana half a dozen times up its length and shove the chocolate in before cooking. It makes a small bit of chocolate go a long way but over doubles the calories (banana is around 100 calories and six small squares of chocolate contain 150 calories). Tastes better than it looks…
Resisting Temptation Hint of the Month: Don’t Eat From Eight until Eight
On dark evenings it’s easy to get stuck into evening sweeties and snacks. Now the days are getting longer, rid yourself of redundant habits. If you find yourself grazing in the evening from habit, try setting a rule where you don’t eat between 8pm and 8am. If you feed yourself well on good, slow-burning food during the day, you should be less hungry in the evening. Aim to finish your evening meal by 8pm and refrain from evening ‘grazing’. Eat more slow burning food earlier, and have more energy during the day.
Fad or Fab: Bike Odometer
“Make things measureable” is one of my fitness mantras. By measuring and mapping walks, runs and bike rides, you can chart your progress. If you have a bike, get an odometer to measure your weekly distance, speed, and ideally cadence too. Write it in a book, or if you run a business, you can actually claim bike mileage at 20 pence per mile. It’s a fact not many small businesses know (note – the journeys need to be work travel journeys not just commuting, which is not taxable). Definitely fab.
Article of the month: Lactose, Not for Everybody
Lactose is a sugar found in milk, and is the cause of one of the main food intolerances around. Lactose intolerance is where the lactose sugar is not metabolised correctly, causing a varying range and intensity of reactions. Excessive phlegm is a common reaction, as are tummy upsets, wind and bloating. The easiest way to tell if you are lactose intolerant (unless you already have symptoms), is to cut out all dairy for a week. It is interesting how it may change how you eat.
Different forms of dairy seem to affect people differently. Goat’s milk has a different chemical structure, and so is usually a good alternative. You can get some very mild tasting goats milks nowadays. Yoghurt is usually also OK as the milk is fermented. Non dairy alternatives to milk include, rice , almond or oat ‘milk’, soy ‘milk’ (although the over-consumption of soy may have effects on estrogen levels, so keep soy for occasional use) and using fresh fruit juice on your morning cereal. There is also ‘Lactofree’ on the market now, which is cow’s milk with the lactose sugar removed.
It tastes exactly the same as normal milk, but may help those with a lactose intolerance.
It is interesting that two of the most common intolerances, wheat and lactose, often seem to be a reaction to over-consumption of either. So follow an easy rule of some, eat a wide variety of foods and not too much of any one thing.
And Finally… Edinburgh Festival of Cycling
A small group of volunteers are in the process of setting up the Edinburgh Festival of Cycling for 15 – 23 June. There’s a diverse range of activities, from group bike rides, to talks (we have Mark Beaumont speaking at the Queen’s Hall), ‘Heels on Wheels’ ladies day of cycling. Check out www.edfoc.org.uk for more information and how to get involved.
Have a happy and Healthy March,
🙂
tracy
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© Copyright all material Tracy Griffen 2013