Bircher Muesli

1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup pear juice
1/2 lemon juiced
1 cup of grated pear or apple
1 cup low fat yohurt - I used Gippslands' family yohurt

Mix the oats and almonds in a bowl and stir through the juice, lemon juice and grated fruit.  Gradually mix in the yohurt until the mixture is quite sloppy.

Cover and leave overnight in the fridge

Add more yohurt in the morning if the mixture is too thick

serve with berries

Makes 4 servings

Christmas Eating

Enjoy Christmas and simply make good choices most of the time - fill up first with the healthy foods then indulge in your favourite christmas food so that you are less likely to over eat!

Continue your regular exercise routine  and you should be able to maintain your weight through this holiday period.

How much sugar?

Foods that contain fruit are the exception when reading the nutritional information panel on the packaging

- no more than 25g per 100g

compared to the general rule where you should  aim for foods with no more than 15g per 100g - ideally look for foods with 5g or less per 100g. (Beware of those coffee sachets!)

Better still eat mostly whole foods than you don't have too many labels to read!

More shake ideas

1 cup cold water or milk
2 celery sticks
1 carrot chopped
1 serve spiralina or wheat grass
1 serve protein powder
2 tablsp flaxseed oil



1 cup cold water or oat milk
1/2 cup chopped apple
1 serve protein powder
1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese
1 tablsp flaxseeds
1/2 cup of raw oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon


1 cup skim milk
1 serve protein powder
1/2 cup mango pieces
squeeze of lemon
1 tablsp flaxseed


1 cup of skim milk
1 serve of choc protein
2 tspn instant coffee
1 tablsp flaxseed
sprinkle of nutmeg before serving


Remember to all these recipes add more nutrition by adding some greens (as discussed at the nutritional talk)

Yummy Muffins

Replace the milk and butter in any recipe with natural yohurt and olive oil or macadamia oil for a great healthy alternative

Healthy Dips

Combine a can of white or butter beans with lemon juice, a little olive oil and fresh herbs.  Whiz in a blender for a delicious creamy bean dip.

Do the same with a can of chickpeas and a clove of garlic for homemade hommus.

For a cheesy dip - mix together 2 tablespoons crumbled feta, 1/2 cup cottage cheese and a tablespoon grated parmesan.


Cottage cheese is made from skim milk so is naturally a low-fate cheese.

Green Power Smoothie

1 pear
1 banana
1 heaped teaspoon goji berries
10 almonds
1 teaspoon flaxseeds
1-2 teaspoon cereal grass (such as supergreens - green barley - wheatgrass- alfalfa powder) OPTIONAL
water - enough to blend to your desired consistency

Add all ingredients to a blender, combine and enjoy

If you don't want to purchase cereal grass powder - perhaps add spinach or sprouts for a nutritional green addition.

Omega 3

There are two types of Omega 3 fatty acids - those found in fish and seafood (DHA, EPA) and a plant type of omega 3 (ALA)

Oily fish, white fish, shellfish
Lean beef, lamb, kangaroo
Canola oil
Mustard seed oil
Linseed, walnuts, wheatgerm

Essential fatty acids are not made in the body, so we have to eat them.

Wonderful for your heart and blood.  It keeps your bloo free-flowing, lowers your blood pressure, lowers triglycerides, steads the beat of your heart and makes your arteries more "elastic" so they flex in and out under pressure.  They also have antiflammatory properties and also a crucial part of the cells in the brain and eyes.

Steps to balance your Omega 3 intake

• eat fish 2 - 3 times a week - fresh, frozen or tinned
• cut out saturated fats from butter, cream, cheese, deli meats and fast foods as saturated fats interfere with the biochemistry of Omega 3
• use canola, olive or flaxseed oil.  (can not heat flaxseed oil)
• eat large serves of green vegetables
• add walnuts, pecans and linseeds to your meals ( again sprinkle linseeds on last as the heat destroys the oil - linseeds are also call flaxseeds)

Note - flaxseeds need to be stored in a sealed container in a cool place as they go rancid quickly.
Do not eat flaxseeds fi you have irritable bowel syndrome due to their high fibre levels

It's important to have a balance of Omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids

Omega 6 sources include 

sunflower oil, safflower oil, cottonseed oil
soybean oil, grapeseed oil
pine nuts, brazil nuts
sesame seeds, sesame oil

Super Foods

These are foods that are crammed with plant-based nutrients, vitamins, minerals,aid digestion, protect cells, boost your immune system and fight off free radicals.

• Cocoa - it contains flavonoids that fight free radical damage.  Supports healthy blood pressure and improves blood flow.  So a couple of squares of dark chocolate daily is good!
• Pomegranate - loaded with antioxidants - three times the amount in green tea and red wine - Vit C
• Goji berries - rich source of Vit C - up to 500 times more than oranges.  Contain antioxidant ntrients betacarotene and zeaxanthin, important for eye health.
• Beetroot - excellent source of heart healthy folate, manganese, potassium along with fibre, vit C, copper, bone healthy magnesium and energy producing iron.
• Quinoa - pronounce keen-wa - a gluten free wholegrain that is high in protein and rich in lysine, manganese, copper, B vitamins, zinc, vit E and selenium
• Blueberries -packed with nutritious antioxidants and very low in calories.
• Garlic - a reputation from preventing anything from the common cold to flu to the plague!  Important role in cardivascular health.
•  Salmon- high in protein, and OMEGA 3 essential fatty acids - DHA and EPA.  Omega 3 makes up a large porportion of the human brain an helps our nerve and brain cells to communicate.
• Yohurt - delivers hundreds fo millions of probiotic organisms into the body to boost the amount of healthy bacteria in the digestive system, keeping digestion smooth and efficient.
• Avocado - great source of potassium, vit K, dietry fibre, vit B6, vit C, folic acid and copper.  Its a monosaturated fat considered heart healthy and can help maintain healthy cholesterol levels.

Dietary Summary

1. Eat 7 or more servings of fruit and vegetables every day (2- fruit, 5- vegies)
2. Eat wholegrain breads and cereals with a low GI
3. Eat more pulses - beans, peas and lentils - and use nuts more frequently
4. Eat more fish and seafoods
5. Eat lean meats and low fat dairy foods
6. Use high omega-3 and monosaturated oils such as olive oil and canola oil

How much should I eat and what should I eat each day?

Bread, cereals, rice, pasta and noodles - 4 serves - where 1 serve is equivalent to 2 slices of bread, 1 cup of rice, pasta or porridge


Vegetables including legumes (beans and peas) - 5 serves - so 1 serve is 1/2 cup cooked vegies or 1 cup of raw vegies


Fruit - 2 serves - where 1 serve is a medium piece of fruit or 1 cup of tin or chopped fresh fruit


Dairy - milk, yohurt, cheese - 2 serves -  so a serve is 1 cup of milk or 40g of cheese or 2 slices, 200g yohurt


Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts, legumes  - 1 serve - a serve is 65-100g cooked meat or 2 small eggs or 1/3 cup nuts or 1/2 cup  legumes - cooked beans, lentils, chickpeas, split peas and canned beans

How to calculate how much protein to eat - Weight in kg x 0.8-1.8 gm/kg = protein gm.

Use a lower number if you are in good health and are sedentary (i.e., 0.8). Use a higher number (between 1 and 1.8) if you are under stress, are pregnant, are recovering from an illness, or if you are involved in consistent and intense weight or endurance training.

In essence, the more you exercise, the greater your protein needs will be.

Water - aim for 2litres. All fluids , other than alcohol contribute to this fluid requirement.   

The main message is to enjoy a variety of foods every day.  Foods should be eaten from each food group every day.

How to organise the ingredients for a main meal

1.     Choose the carbohydrate

2.     Add the vegies and lots –quantity and variety

3.     Include protein

4.     Think twice about the fat you add – olive, canola, mustard seed, macadamia, soybean or another mono- or poly-unsaturated type.

Tips for losing weight

Focus on what to eat, rather than what not to eat

·        Ensure you eat the minimum of each healthy food groups

Eat at least one low GI food at each meal

·        Reducing the GI in your diet will reduce insulin levels and increase the potential for fat burning

Reduce your fat intake, especially saturated fat

·        Reducing the amount of fat is an effective way to lower the energy density of your diet since fat contains more kilojoules per gram than any other food.  It is unnecessary and unwise to cut fat out completely.  Look to consume healthier fats.

Eat regularly

·        It prevents over eating at certain times of the day

·        Keep your metabolism churning over

·        Make all choices nutritious- aim for 5-6 small "meals" a day

Weight Control Secret

Our resting metabolic rate is responsible for 70% of the energy our body burns in a 24 hour period so it makes sense that we need to find ways to maintain or even increase our resting metabolic rate.  Particularly since a low resting metabolic rate will put you at greater risk of weight gain.

Exercise or any physical activity speeds up our metabolic rate.

Exercise makes our muscles bigger and therefore more energy demanding

Maintaining muscle mass by exercising is therefore important to weight control.

So consider asking  Santa for some dumbbells for Christmas

 - 2.5kg and 4kg

Here's a simple home workout you need only do twice a week and it will only take 15 minutes!

• push ups - as many as you can - knees can be on the ground
• dumbbell shoulder press - set your feet hip width apart, knees slightly bent, dumbbell in your hands just outside your shoulders, press the db's upwards until your arms are straight, slowly lower db's back to shoulder position - repeat 8-10 times
• dumbbell step ups - holding db's by your sides - step up and down onto a box or similiar no higher than  20cm
• bent over rows - bent over, back flat, arms hanging down holding db's, raise the db's towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together, slowly lower the db's to start position repeat 8-10 times
• lunge walk or squats - 10 reps
• bridges - pose for 10secs at the top of the movement - repeat 10 times
• Repeat this complete circuit 3 times