Jamie Recommends: 5 Food & Drink Essentials

Want to eat and drink like a champion? Here’s your chance – Olympian, and monthly TLL columnist, Jamie Baulch shares his top five go-to items for a healthy lifestyle (and they even help with weight loss too!). Time to stock up your kitchen cupboard…

My partner Cheryl and I like to lead a healthy lifestyle when it comes to what we eat and drink. So this month, I thought I’d give you some tips on what I’m loving right now and why they’re really good for you.

Coconut Oil:

This oil over the last few years has really come to the forefront. Unlike most oils, this one doesn’t change its composition when you heat it at high temperatures. It also has amazing nutritional properties. Coconut oil is the world’s most weight loss friendly fat. It contains a unique combination of fatty acids with powerful effects on metabolism.

Matcha Tea:

I have been drinking this in the mornings for the last few years. One of the major health benefits of matcha tea is that it delivers loads of antioxidants. It provides you with green teas benefits of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids in a way no other green tea can. I find myself very alert but calm and ready for the day when I have this tea. Matcha is packed with more antioxidants than any other ‘superfood’ and has 137 times more antioxidants than regularly brewed green tea. It boosts your metabolism and burns calories and gives you focus and clarity.

Coconut water:

This is an amazing thirst quencher. It’s full of nutrients that have loads of health benefits. I suggest drinking a glass of coconut water 3/4 times a week to help with weight loss. Don’t drink too much coconut water though, as eventually it may add more calories than you want. It’s packed with antioxidants, amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, vitamin C and minerals like iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, manganese and zinc. If you do like to have a social alcoholic drink on the weekends, then this is a great drink to rehydrate you the following morning.

Avocados:

I try to eat an avocado every day, and it’s usually on toasted spelt bread. An avocado a day increases your healthy fat and calorie intake. Fat is essential for every single cell in your body. In fact, over 60% of our brain is made of fat. Eating healthy fats supports skin health, enhances the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. So don’t be fooled by fat-free and low-fat products, or shy away from foods like avocados and nuts that are full of healthy fats. Since the low fat and fat free fad came into play years ago, food suppliers often replace the fat in ‘reduced and fat-free’ products with sugar!

Buckwheat pasta:

Is a slow releasing carbohydrate, meaning it’s a source of good long-lasting energy. It’s also offers a good helping of magnesium. Magnesium relaxes blood vessels, improves blood flow and nutrient delivery whilst lowering blood pressure, the perfect combination for a tip-top cardiovascular system. The best bit is you can cut calories virtually in half when you switch from regular white pasta to buckwheat pasta. We use buckwheat pasta just as you would regular pasta.

Jamie Baulch is probably most well known as a British sprint athlete and television presenter. He won the 400 metres gold medal at the 1999 World Indoor Championships. As a member of the British 4x400m quartet including Iwan Thomas, Roger Black and Mark Richardson, he won a gold medal at the 1997 World Championships, and silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games. He represented Wales at the Commonwealth Games where he won an individual silver and a bronze medal in the 4 × 400m relay. Jamie developed into one of the big personalities of the British athletics team, recognised by his peroxide dreadlocks for many years, which led to a promotional campaign with Vidal Sassoon. He has now retired from athletics and has several ventures including getting people fit and healthy. With all the knowledge he has has built up over the years, means he’s perfect for the job.

www.jamiebaulch.com