The Energy Plan summary

Many of us have a troubled relationship with fat; we’re either reaching for fatty junk foods, or banishing all fat from our diets. But rather than adopting an all-or-nothing approach, it’s better to educate ourselves about fat, so that we can make better choices.

The first thing to know is that cutting out all fat from your diet is a big mistake. That's because fat helps your body to absorb certain vitamins, such as vitamin A and vitamin D. Fat is also a crucial component of your body’s cells; it helps your blood to clot, and gives your immune system a boost, too. 

How much do you drink, and what’s your beverage of choice? The right liquids will give you an energy boost – but failing to integrate fluids into your healthy eating plan can cause you to lag. 

Most of your fluid intake should be one important, but often overlooked, nutrient: water. 

It’s often said that there is no such thing as unhealthy food – only unhealthy diets. With this in mind, the key to using food to energize your body is to eat the right foods in the right combinations. The first step toward combining healthy foods into an energizing diet is to build your performance plate. 

Of course, before you can start putting together your performance plates, you’ll need to know what a portion looks like. So, to clarify, one portion of protein is about the size of your palm, one portion of carbohydrate is a cupped handful, a portion of vegetables is two handfuls, and a portion of healthy fat is about the size of your thumb. 

Not every day is the same, and so your energy demands aren’t the same either. The meals that gave you sufficient energy on a lazy Tuesday might not keep you going on an action-packed Saturday. So let’s explore how you might tailor your eating to fluctuating energy requirements. 

We’ll start by looking at what you might eat on a medium day. During a medium day, you might have a training session in the early morning, and then work for the rest of the day. 

The Olympic village food hall at the 2012 Olympics was packed with healthy eating options. But among all the nutrition-packed meals on offer, there was something else, too; a McDonalds restaurant. That’s right – even in the Olympic village, athletes had to withstand temptation. If you’re going to start eating better, then you’ll need to resist temptation, too. 

A great way to stay on track is to manage your environment. 

Despite what you might have heard, there’s no need to slow down as you get older. Just look at athletes like Martina Navratilova, who won the mixed doubles at the US Open just before her fiftieth birthday, or Ed Whitlock, who in 2016 ran a marathon in under four hours – at the age of 86! These people hit their energy peak in later life, and so can you. 

If you want to age exceptionally well, you should start thinking about your strategy while you're still relatively young. The effects of the aging process can actually be felt in your thirties, so by your forties you should be actively adjusting your eating and exercise plan so that you can enjoy decades of healthy life to come.