The No Excuses Cookbook Extract
Introduction
What you eat is even more important than how much exercise you do. I've said it before, but it's worth saying again: your weight and your health will always come down to what you put in your mouth. So it's super-essential to eat well – not just while you're torching the extra kilos, but for the rest of your life. (Of course, exercise is still important – good for the body and equally good for the head!)
If you've read any of my other books, though, you'll know I'm not about deprivation or eating food that tastes like cardboard. Eating for good health should be fun! And learning to cook good, nutritious food for yourself is not only a big money-saver, it's one of the most important skills you can have for your health and one of the best gifts you could pass on to your kids. Plus, you can put together a great meal in the time it would take you to get takeaway – promise! It's time to stop eating like a teenager and start taking control of what goes into your body. No excuses.
That's where this book comes in: it's packed with simple, nutritious recipes that taste brilliant and will keep you on the straight and narrow weight-wise. Just remember a few basic food rules:
Watch your calories. Remember, eat more than you burn and you'll put on weight. The dishes in this book clock in at between 250 and 350 calories per serve, so three meals a day plus snacks will hit most people's recommended daily intake, no problems. To lose weight, women need to stick to 1200 calories a day, and men to 1800 calories – check out the menu plan at the back of the book for some example days.
Keep an eye on the scales. If the kilos are starting to creep up and you're having to jump around the room to zip up your favourite jeans, take action. Check your portion sizes and calorie counts, cut back on the alcohol and ramp up your exercise.
Set limits for yourself. Use smaller plates, never go back for seconds, never eat while you're cooking, and never eat the leftovers.
Dessert is a luxury. You'll see I've put in a few dessert recipes, but I don't want you to get the wrong idea and eat them every day – they're for special occasions only, people! Don't let your sweet tooth destroy all your hard work.
Eat whole foods – the fresher the better!
Consider how what you eat affects others. I take a strong stance on only eating ethically produced, organic and free-range meat, fish and produce: better for you, better for the environment, and definitely better for the animals you eat. Take a look at 'Food values' on page 26 for more.
Make eating well automatic. If you learn a handful of great recipes, put together a quick plan each week and shop to your plan, then you'll never be tempted to pick up pizza on the way home or eat a whole packet of biscuits as 'dinner'. If you've never cooked before, choose just two or three of the simplest recipes to start with, to get your confidence up. You'll be branching out in no time.
The beauty of this book is that it has recipes for all events – from picnics to parties, and breakfast to barbecues. To be straight with you, this isn't a diet book, it's a book for everyday meals that I'm sure you'll love as much as I do.
The great flavours mean that the recipes are super-tasty, totally yum and satisfying.
Happy cooking!
Michelle xoxo