It is important for all active people, adults and children, to
eat well every day and not just concentrate on healthy eating prior to major
sporting events or competition. Maintaining energy levels through healthy
eating habits and ensuring adequate hydration by taking fluids regularly, will
assist you to produce your best performance each day – be it in the
work place, the class room or on the sporting field.
The nutrient analysis which follows each recipe in this cookbook
can be used as a guide to the nutritional contribution these meals make to the daily food intake of family
members. The exact energy and nutrient requirements of individual active kids is
very variable and is dependent on age, gender and their sport. It is not my
intention that people use this cookbook to assess or calculate their energy needs
or intake. However in the interests of being able to use this information to
assess how these meals fit into daily life, having an idea of how much an
active kid may require could help.
The current recommendations for energy intake of active kids are
based on the data available for the general population. The approximate
recommended daily energy intake for girls aged from 5-11 years ranges from 6700
- 7900 kJ. For the same aged boys, this ranges from 6700 - 8900 kJ per day. Energy
intake needs to be balanced with energy output to produce a healthy, “glowing and growing”, active kid.
The daily requirement for protein is generally easily met if a
child consumes a wide variety of foods and eats sufficient total energy to grow
and develop at a healthy rate.
Nutrition Goals
1. Eat plenty of carbohydrate rich foods throughout each day for
get up and go.
2. Eat little and often to maintain blood sugar levels, energy
and concentration.
3. Avoid high fat food traps. Learn which foods have hidden
fats.
4. Include foods containing protein to provide the nutrients
required for growth.
4. Drink suitable fluids during each day to maintain adequate
hydration.
5. Always include a wide variety of foods to ensure all nutrient
needs are met.
Survival Hints
1. Be organised ahead of time – plan for busy meal times.
2. Use a mix of fresh, canned, frozen and packaged foods to
produce nourishing meals and snacks quickly.
3. Shop from a list to ensure you have the necessary foods
available to prepare the meals planned.
4. Use your freezer – prepare extra quantities to
be kept for another time.
5. Experiment with new ideas and recipes and encourage your
children to assist with the preparation of meals and snacks.
Most of the recipes included in this cookbook are suitable for
every day eating. And you might like to try modifying some of your own family’s favourite meals
using fat reduced, salt reduced or no added sugar products to produce healthy
meals quickly.
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