Whenever I speak to my friends or Derval.ie members about their health goals they are often directly linked to weight. More specifically people want to lose some weight. In recent weeks this has increased with lots of people feeling they’ve gained a little bit above their norm during lockdown. I’ve always tried to focus on overall health and believe that results will follow. I’m also very conscious about people feeling positive in their bodies and not linking a number on the scales with their self-worth. I do think however that it’s important to acknowledge what motivates a person and what will help them be healthy. If that is toning up or trimming down, as long as it is being achieved in a sensible, healthy manner then I’m all for it! Today I’m sharing how food portioning will help you be at your healthiest and also a simple 20 minute circuit from my site Derval.ie.

Portioning:

When it comes to dropping weight or toning up, the best results are obtained when you combine the right exercise with good food choices, and do this consistently over a period of time. Portioning is hugely important, and is something that can be overlooked by a lot of people, including myself sometimes.

Getting the portion size right will be a huge asset to you and a skill that you will have forever. So, how much of each food group should you be eating? First let’s start off with the plate you are using. As a way to help you visually understand it is recommended that your plate is the size of your hand, from the base of your palm to your fingertips. Use your hand to measure against your plates at home and pick the one that represents the closest fit to the recommendation.

Now that you know what size your plate should be, you need to consider how much of each food group you should be putting onto it.

To maintain or drop weight, your plate should be:

– 50% Vegetables
– 25% Protein
– 25% Carbohydrates
– 1 tbsp of healthy fats

This is a guideline. It might not be realistic to have your plate look like this for each meal, so try to think about your macronutrient consumption throughout the entire day instead. For instance, if you had a bowl of pasta for lunch, go lighter on the carbs at dinner time and add some extra veggies instead, or if you had a salad for lunch, you can go a little lighter on veggies for dinner. We should enjoy meal times, so don’t get yourself down if every meal isn’t portioned as per the above, but do keep plugging away and aim for the right portioning for you. Being mindful of your food portioning and choices will go a long way to achieving your health goals.

5 Quick Tips for Food:

– Use a plate that is the size of your hand
– Be aware of your hunger
– Look at your food for lots of colour on the plate
– Aim to hit all the food groups for a healthy balanced diet
– Don’t skip meals or snacks – aim to eat 3 meals and 2 snacks per day

As I’ve mentioned above combining food with exercise is really important in order to reach your goals. I’ve shared a toning workout on @theglossmag’s Instagram page. Last week I outlined how all you need is 15 minutes for a good workout, the workout I’ve shared is approximately 15-20 minutes and I promise you’ll feel the burn!

Burrito In a Bowl

This recipe is full of gorgeous flavours; it’s a great mid-week choice because it’s ready in no time. It’s delicious as leftovers the next day so consider making more than you need. It’s also quite balanced if you consider the guidelines for portioning that I have outlined above.

Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp paprika
• 500g lean minced beef
• 3 tbsp Greek or natural yoghurt
• 3 tbsp lime juice
• 3 tbsp tomato purée
• 60ml water
• 400g tin of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 125g
• brown rice
• ½ iceberg lettuce, shredded
• 1 ripe avocado, peeled and sliced
• 100g Cheddar, grated
• Wholemeal wraps, to serve

Method:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the red onion and cook for about 10 minutes, until softened. Add the cayenne pepper and paprika and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the mince and cook for about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, cook the rice according to the instructions on the package. Mix the Greek yoghurt and lime juice in a small bowl and set aside.
3. When the mince is cooked, stir in the tomato purée, water and kidney beans and heat through.
4. Warm the wraps according to the instructions on the package. Divide the cooked rice between the wraps. Add a layer of iceberg lettuce to each one, followed by a layer of avocado slices and a layer of spicy mince. Sprinkle the Cheddar on top and finish with a dollop of the Greek yoghurt.

For those of you who enjoyed dipping your toe into toning and wish to continue on this path I am launching a new Tone at Home 28-day challenge on June 22nd on Derval.ie. Members of Derval.ie will be tasked with a daily workout focused on toning up, weekly meal plans and simple recipes that are lean and will compliment your training; daily self-care tips and tracking tools to measure your progress. There will also be weekly Live workouts on the private members Facebook group which are great for keeping motivated and getting the correct coaching tips and technique to ensure your form is correct. If being part of a community and having a structured plan appeals to you, head to Derval.ie and you can get the first week of the challenge for free with a 7 day trial.

As a special treat for you lovely Gloss readers I have five annual Derval.ie memberships up for grabs just head to @theglossmag’s Instagram page to enter.