Month: February 2023

With prices going up, eating healthily but without spending a fortune is possible. We’d like to share with you this easy (and incredibly tasty) minestrone soup recipe which serves 5 people and works out at just 80p per serving!

Ingredients:
2 tsps olive oil
180g white onion, chopped
250g carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery sticks, chopped
¾ tsp sea salt
2 tbsps tomato purée
1.25 litres vegetable stock (made with one organic stock cube)
2 tsps dried oregano
½ tsp ground black pepper
400g (drained weight) tinned cannellini, haricot or pinto beans, drained
400g tinned chopped tomatoes
a sprig of fresh thyme (optional)
150g dried Rigatoni or elbow pasta (use gluten free if preferred)
30g Parmesan cheese, grated (use dairy free if preferred)
a large handful of spinach leaves or kale, stems and ribs removed, chopped

Serves 5

Per serving:
253 calories
12g protein
40g carbs
5g fat

Method:

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium flame. Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Fry gently for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Season with the salt.

Stir in the tomato purée, stock, oregano, black pepper, beans, tinned tomatoes and thyme
(if using).

Increase heat until simmering gently. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the pasta and cook for 10 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente. Top up with more stock or water if the soup is too thick.

Stir in most of the Parmesan cheese and spinach. Cook for 2 minutes, or until the spinach is wilted. Remove the thyme sprig and discard.

Serve garnished with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

Store any leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze on same day.

We’re at the time of year where many of us say to ourselves “we’ll get started on a fitness programme but once Christmas is over and January begins.”
However, January comes round and you get started, then it’s time for a birthday – say in February or March and you find yourself eating a bit of cake and say, “I’ll start again after Easter as there’s going to be chocolate.”
Then it’s summer and you say, “I’ll start after the holidays”, and so it continues.
So this year, be kind to yourself. Yes, there are going to be holidays and events and parties and temptations but that’s no reason not to start now.
Remember, you haven’t blown it if you have a bit of cake or a few chocolates. Keep focusing on what you want to achieve and make your progress measurable. You can do it!
Zoe

As the days get shorter and the weather changes it’s not surprising a lot of us find our ‘get-up-and-go’ flagging at this time of year.
So how can you keep motivated with keeping fit and active at this time of year? Here are some of our tips:

• Buddy up with a friend and go out for a walk in your lunch break. Take a coffee with you if you like and enjoy your walk and chat.
• If you prefer to exercise alone, load up your music player or phone with your favourite, motivating music. Pop in your earphones and take a walk or jog. Just make sure that you can still hear other road users if listening to music. Keep safe!
• Join a group – that might be a fitness class, a walking group or perhaps join in a free guided cycle ride. You can find a ride in your area at: Let’s Ride
• Set yourself a goal – whether that’s running or walking a 5k, a swim or a fundraising challenge. It really helps to have something to focus on to keep you going.
• At this time of year we can often head for comfort foods – enjoy your treats as part of a balanced diet. Pile up your dinner plate with lots of lovely winter veg, alongside your protein and other carbs. Stews and soups are really comforting and can be super healthy!

I’m really pleased to be offering brand new FREE ladies’ social cycle rides in the local area. Starting on September 3rd with our first ride around Billinghay and Walcott, and another chance to ride the route on October 1st, these are offered in my position as a volunteer cycle leader with Breeze. Breeze is an initiative by British Cycling to get more women into cycling.
My rides are for people who are fairly new to cycling or who would like to build up their confidence on a bike and ride with others in a non-competitive, social and friendly environment. Or perhaps it has been a while since you have been on your bike and you would like to get back into cycling with other bike lovers.
The majority of our routes will be on quiet roads or cycle lanes where possible and will always include a stop for coffee and a natter!
Our rides will take place on Saturday or Sunday mornings and will be at an easy going, gentle pace.
Make new friends and enjoy being outdoors while exploring the area on two wheels!
Zoe

Whether you’re looking to lose or put on weight an essential tool is to get an idea of the calorie content of different foods. There are a few ways of doing this. One easy way is to look at food packaging and the recommended serving sizes. Other tools that our clients find useful are calorie tracking apps such as Nutracheck or MyFitnessPal.
On average, a woman needs 2,000 calories a day to maintain their weight and a man needs 2,500. This is just a guide, however, and does depend on activity levels and body composition.
So if you’re looking to lose weight you’ll obviously need to eat less calories and more to gain weight.
While sticking to good nutrition is important you don’t have to cut out all the foods you enjoy – just be mindful.
To give you an idea, we’ve listed a few favourite sweet snacks so you can see how many calories are in each.

Mars Bar (51g) = 228 calories

Twix (2 fingers) = 250 calories

3 chocolate digestive biscuits = 258 calories (86 calories each)

Freddo bar (18g) = 95 calories

3 Jaffa cakes = 138 calories (46 calories each)

Dairy Milk bar (45g) = 240 calories

We read with interest the recent news that exercise is expected to be prescribed over painkillers in treating osteoarthritis. Exercise has many benefits and this is great news. However, we have to bear in mind that exercise is not a ‘one size fits all’ and that the exercise needs to be specific to the individual. We look forward to hearing more about these proposals from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).