Have you ever given any thought to how many calories you consume on Christmas day?

On average you will consume between 5000-6000 ! The equivalent of three days worth of calories.

According to research you would have to run two marathons to work off a traditional Christmas lunch. So that would mean to burn that you would have to run 52 miles – burning 2,600 calories over a 26.2 mile course. If running two marathons isn’t your thing you could always hit the gym for 9 hours straight, burning 590 calories an hour in the weights room and on the treadmill.

 

Typically between Christmas Eve and New Years Day we gain approximately 4 – 5 lbs, but that comes as no surprise as we’ve generally consumed twice our normal calorie intake. It can take up to at least Easter to lose that extra weight we gained over the festive period!

 

Unquestionably we want to enjoy the Christmas period without worrying about calories, diets and weight, but if you’re hoping not to undo all the hard work you’ve put into losing any weight prior to the Christmas period then maybe try having smaller portions or healthier/lighter options. Maybe try using a smaller plate than a standard sized dinner plate.

There’s no doubt that with the invention of Zwift people are riding much more through the winter and consequently staying fitter. This means that when the weather improves and people get outside more they’re better prepared to start training in earnest and hit those early season races hard.

But is Zwift really the answer, or are there other ways you can train indoors more efficiently?

Zwift has many positives – the flashy graphics and virtual racing really motivate lots of people who would otherwise skip indoor training. There’s no doubt that your general fitness will benefit simply because you ride more in the winter. However, in terms of specific improvements, ‘racing’ on Zwift is a bit of a scatter gun approach to your training. Virtual racing also means that you’re in danger of doing too much unstructured high intensity work in the winter which can be to the detriment of your performance later on when you really want to be going well in the races or sportives you’re actually aiming for.

 

If you are really serious about improving your performance then you need to train smart and target certain areas of your fitness. How do you know which areas to target? Ideally you’ll have lots of data from training and racing last year. Otherwise you can do stand alone FTP and other fitness tests. From these results you can build up a picture of your strengths and weaknesses and devise a plan to improve your weaknesses whilst maintaining your strengths.

 

This is where the ‘smart’ part comes in. Now you have all this knowledge about yourself you can target the areas you really need to work on. Even just a couple of structured workouts a week, targeting specific areas of fitness or your performance will bring your riding along in leaps and bounds.

So if you are really serious about improving for next season, add in some specific structured workouts, or even better a training plan targeted on the improvements you want or need to make to take your cycling to the next level.

What you will need –

1. A mug, any size – the bigger the mug the bigger the cake
2. Loaf tin
3. Greaseproof paper to line the tin
4. Mixing bowl

 

Ingredients –

1. 2 mugs of selfraising flour – either plain or white ( I do half and half)
2. 1 mug of sultanas
3. 1½ mugs of stewed black tea  
4. 1 TSP of baking powder (optional, but I find that the cake turns out better with it)

 

Oven temperature 160/180 fan, middle shelf

 

Method –

1. Place a mug of sultanas into a mixing bowl and pour in 1½ mugs of freshly brewed tea, leave to soak for approx 2-3 hours

 

2. Measure out two mugs of flour along with the baking powder (if using) and then mix into the wet mixture. If you find the mixture too dry just add a little extra liquid. (It is trial and error)

 

3. Place mixture into a loaf tin and bake for approx 40-50 minutes or until skewer/knife comes out reasonably clean

 

Top Tips

1. You don’t necessarily have to use tea you can use any liquid, black coffee works well and still keeps the cake fat free, or if that doesn’t particularly matter to you, you can use flavoured milk.

 

2. To add extra flavour to the loaf you can add flavouring, for example ginger, mixed spice or almond essence.

 

3. If you fancy a bit more substance to your loaf try adding some walnuts or dates, but remember whatever ingredients you add it mustonly be a mug in total, so for example you could use half a mug of sultanas and half a mug of walnuts.  

Courtesy of @challengeannika

Cyclo-cross, CX, or just ‘Cross is a great aspect of cycling that’s accessible to all  – here are some of the reasons why you should try it!

 

1. You can race CX on any bike….(in local CX races). Many people ride CX races on mountain bikes, on winter bikes with knobbly tyres on, or even hybrids, so you can always give it a try first before deciding to buy a CX specific bike.
2. Races are short! Most races are about an hour or less, so just about anyone can come along and try. This means that even the most serious CX racers don’t tend to spend long hours training.
3. CX is great fun! Cyclo-cross might include a little tarmac, but it’s largely off road, on tracks, gravel, grass, and through the mud. Wherever you ride CX it’s fun!
4. Fitness – ‘Cross involves jumping on and off your bike with a little bit of running, so it certainly helps you keep fit through the winter. Riding on grass and through mud is always a pretty good workout and there are the extra benefits of cross-training as you do run a little too.
5. Improve your bike handling skills. All those different and often slippery surfaces mean you soon sharpen up your balance and co-ordination, which carries through to other aspects of your riding making you a more confident rider in general.
6. It’s friendly – CX has a reputation as one of the most friendly types of cycle sport. Yes, people can be very competitive, but they are always really sociable events.

 

 

KOM Coaching can help

Not only is Martin a British Cycling Level 3 Coach and Coach Educator, but he has also delivered L2 Cyclo-Cross specific coaching courses for BC.

More serious riders may want personally prescribed coaching, whilst others may prefer to opt for fixed training plans which available for beginners, intermediate and advanced riders.

Cheap, low calorie, tasty and nutritious!

Serves 2 generous portions or can make 3 smaller portions

Calories per portion if only serving two 238, if serving three 158 calories

Total cost approx £2.00 – £1.00 per portion serving two –  £0.66p if serving three.

Ingredients 

Chopped onions 200g

Shredded carrot 300g

Steam bag cauliflower rice

Frozen fine cut green beans 200g

Petits pois 200g

Garam Masala 1 tablespoon

 

Method

1. Cook/steam the green vegetables and cauliflower rice ready to add later on in the recipe
2. Fry onions until soft
3. Add 1 tablespoon of Garam Masala, 2 tablespoons of cold water and mix
4. Add the green beans, petitis pois and give a good stir and leave on a low heat for about 5 minutes
5. Add the grated carrot and mix well, and then add the cauliflower rice mix and put lid on and leave on a low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Once carrot is cooked and soft the Biryani is ready to serve

 

TIP

If you have a healthy appetite and eat meat you can always add a cooked chicken breast chopped up or any meat of your choice, remember this will add calories to the dish

If storing leftovers, place in a microwave container in the fridge and make sure meal is thoroughly heated through when ready to eat. I find kept in the fridge the Biryani is ok up to three days if no meat is added.

Courtesy of @challengeannika