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How to eat your way to gold: Want to be a serious competitor when it comes to sports? You need to make sure you’re eating right. Your body needs the right fuel to perform to the peak of its abilities, so check out these 10 medal-winning meals that will have you going for gold in no time.

If you can’t stomach a full meal first thing in the morning when you’ve just woken up, then you should consider following in the footsteps of gold medal winning track cyclist Chris Hoy by having a healthy fruit smoothie. As well as being delicious and simple to make, smoothies are filled to the brim with antioxidants, as well as calcium and vitamins.

400m hurdle world champion Dai Greene lives by a simple philosophy; “the stopwatch never lies”. If you eat badly, then it is highly likely you will perform badly. Follow Dai’s healthy eating example by enjoying a meal of eggs on toast. Eggs are great as a protein boost, which helps to develop and build strength in muscles. Serve the eggs with wholemeal bread, which is a fantastic source of vitamins B and E, and you’re well on your way to a winning meal.

One of the biggest enemies of healthy eating are those mid-morning munchies that have you running to the vending machine. To avoid this unwanted hunger before lunch you should eat a meal high in fibre, which superstar hepathlete Jessica Ennis does by eating bran cereal in the morning. Not only does this cereal contain fibre to keep her full for a day of gruelling events, it also boasts an impressive amount of iron, […]

Recently overindulged? Feeling a bit sluggish? Or just not looking your best? It could be that your body is in need of a detox. Fortunately, there are many foods around that can help counteract the effects of a toxic lifestyle. Whether you want to lose weight, feel more energised, improve your complexion or boost your mood, check out these top 10 foods to cleanse your body and boost your health.

Lemons are a staple of many detox diets, and there is good reason for this. Firstly, lemons are packed with antioxidant vitamin C, which is great for the skin and for fighting disease-forming free-radicals. Furthermore, the citrus fruit has an alkaline effect on the body, meaning that it can help restore the body’s pH balance, benefitting the immune system. Try starting your day with hot water and a slice of lemon to help flush out toxins and cleanse your system.

If too much fatty food or alcohol has caused problems for your digestive system, it may be worthwhile adding some ginger to your diet. Ginger is not only great for reducing feelings of nausea, but it can help improve digestion, beat bloating and reduce gas. In addition to this, ginger is high in antioxidants and is good for boosting the immune system. To give your digestion a helping hand, try sipping on ginger tea or adding some freshly grated ginger to a fruit or vegetable juice.

Garlic has long been known for its heart benefits, however the pungent food is also good at detoxifying the body. Garlic is not only antiviral, antibacterial and antibiotic, but it contains a chemical called allicin which promotes the production of white blood cells and helps fight against toxins. Garlic is best […]

From that 3pm trip to the snack machine to those evenings curled up on the sofa with your favourite treat, we all know the major culprits when it comes to gaining weight. However, the reasons why you’re struggling to keep off the pounds may not be as obvious as you think. To rid yourself of sneaky diet spoilers, check out these 7 surprising things that make you fat. 

While having close friends generates plenty of health benefits, research has also indicated that being overweight can be contagious amongst friends. Research results published in the journal PLoS ONE indicated that students were likelier to gain weight friends if they had friends who were heavier than them, while a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine found that having an obese friend increases your chance of obesity by 50 per cent. The good news is being slim can also be contagious, so try to influence your social group and keep your weight down by arranging healthy, fun group activities such as walks, bike rides or dance classes.

Surprising thing that makes you fat: Diet foods

You’ve cleared your cupboards of junk food, stocked up on smoothies and cereal bars, and now you’re feeling pretty saintly. However, those seemingly innocent diet foods nestling in your cupboards could actually be causing you to gain weight. Many foods claiming to be diet-friendly are actually hidden calorie traps packed with sugar and syrups. In fact, ‘healthy’ cereal bars can contain as much fat, sugar and calories as an average chocolate bar. Research by the Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio also found that those who consumed diet drinks daily experienced a 70 per cent greater […]

Diets always have to be about eating less, right? Wrong. Diets don’t have to involve eating drastically less than you normally would and you can actually eat more and lose weight, just so long as you are eating the right foods. Here we show you the foods to eat lots of if you want to lose weight and how you can ditch those hunger pangs for good. By REAL BUZZ

We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again: do not skip breakfast. Studies published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association have found that those people who do not eat a decent meal first thing eat more calories during the day. Interestingly, when it comes to losing weight, the type of foods you eat at breakfast matters too.

According to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity people who ate two eggs for breakfast lost 65 per cent more than those participants who ate the other breakfast option, which were bagels. Those who ate eggs also reported feeling more energetic than the bagel-breakfasters, which is always helpful when you are trying to lose weight because it might encourage you to workout. Therefore not only should you be eating breakfast you should also try eating eggs for breakfast, or other protein-rich food.

What to eat more of to lose weight: Eat eggs for breakfast or foods that are high in protein, such as natural yoghurt and a handful of nuts.

A great way you can eat more but still lose weight is to eat more fruit. Specifically, you should eat more fruit before a meal because, according to findings, eating fruit before a main meal will fill you up, but because fruit is low in calories […]

Feeling down in the dumps? Sometimes we don’t have the time to spend a day at the spa or invite friends and family over to de-stress and cheer us up, so we’ve compiled a list of quick tricks to give you a no-prescription-required burst of bliss in a jiffy. Here are 10 instant ways to boost your mood:

Who doesn’t love a good soak in the bath? A study by Yale University revealed that relaxing amongst the bubbles does more than simply relax and refresh our bodies. In fact, a warm bath or shower can act as an effective substitute for social interaction when we’re feeling lonely. The researchers from Yale University questioned 51 students about their everyday routines and their emotions, which revealed that those who regularly soaked in a warm bath and had hot drinks felt happier than those who had quick showers and very few hot drinks. If you need a quick pick-me-up, have a soak in the bath. If you need an even quicker pick-me-up, simply make yourself a warm drink for an instantly better mood.

Sometimes when we’re feeling down, a good serving of mood-boosting nutrients is all we need. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh carried out a study in which they took blood tests from 106 healthy adults and measured their happiness. The study revealed that those with higher levels of omega 3 in their blood were 49 to 58 per cent happier than those with lower omega 3 levels.  Chocolate is an excellent mood booster too. The high levels of serotonin, alongside many other […]