Good nutrition advice

Is hard to come by.

Why? Well, I went for my new workout at the gym yesterday and got to chatting to the nice young coach that is meant to be trained in this kind of thing. He claimed to know all about nutrition and training and gave me loads of useful advice (I hope you can detect the sarcastic tone here) about how to lose fat and gain muscle. Apparently I am eating too much fruit. Yes, despite being told by all and sundry that we should be eating AT LEAST five portions of fruit and veg a day (and actually the real optimum amount is more like 8-10) he told me that my high fruit intake meant that the fructose was being converted directly into fat. And landing on my belly.

Huh?

He emailed me a couple of articles that claimed to back this up and, still not convinced, I contacted a really trustworthy source and the real mine of information that is tri-coach Dara and emailed her the articles. Surprise, surprise, he was talking a load of old baloney.

I'm not going into the ins and outs of it but I just wanted to warn anyone reading this that you must get proper nutritional information from people that are properly trained. It is a science - something I remember from having to take O level chemistry in order to do A level Food and Nutrition.

I heard a story recently about someone being told (by their GP) that cooked tomatoes were bad for them. For years they avoided them (and this was despite the fact that they absolutely loved them). At the doctors some 30 years later they happened to mention this advice and how they had followed it religiously - only to be informed that it was a load of old trollop and they could eat tomatoes (cooked or otherwise) with impunity. I often think of this poor chap, avoiding a food that they loved and that would have had such a beneficial effect on their health, all on the advice of a so-called 'professional'.

Be as careful about who you listen to as to what you eat. You may then be in with a chance of remaining healthy.