Never Miss Breakfast! by Lindsey Leatherbarrow ( Dietitian )

Breakfast literally means “break the fast”. It is a vital meal that replaces fuel used by the body and brain overnight. During the night, the body builds and repairs itself and the nutrients required for this need to be replenished. Breakfast gives you the energy to start the day. It allows you to deal with the mental and physical demands of the morning whether at school, work, or just out and about. Eating breakfast improves mental alertness and physical performance. Being hungry is a distraction to learning, and so if your children are to grow well and perform at their peak, they need a good start to the day. Having a good breakfast is more likely to improve concentration as well as improve their moods.

Breakfast should ideally provide about a quarter of our daily nutritional requirements. Research shows that those who eat breakfast are more likely to meet nutritional requirements for nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and fibre.

A wholesome breakfast should include:

A starch or carbohydrate rich food, to provide energy, B vitamins, some iron and fibre: breakfast cereal (ideally not sugar coated), porridge or bread. A calcium rich food – milk, cheese or yoghurt. This will provide protein, calcium and B vitamins. The calcium keeps bones strong. Always choose low fat or skimmed (fat free) dairy products.

A fruit – fresh, frozen, dried or stew fruit will all do. This will provide vitamins and fibre to the breakfast. Breakfast is a perfect time to include at least one of the 5 recommended portions of fruit and vegetables for the day.

It is also good to include a drink at breakfast – whether this is water, milk, tea or coffee.

BREAKFAST IDEAS

Oat with low fat or fat free milk served with raisins or cranberries. All-Bran with low fat fruit yoghurt with some fresh juicy strawberries. Peanut butter on two slices of whole wheat bread with a glass of milk and a banana. Cheese on two slices of low GI or rye bread plus a half a grapefruit on the side.

Adults and children should be encouraged to eat breakfast every day. It is estimated that in South Africa, 1 in 10 children skips breakfast but by routinely eating breakfast, you and your family will be developing a healthy habit that will last a lifetime. People who eat breakfast have more balanced diets than those who skip this meal, and be eating this vital meal, you are far less likely to be overweight. Missing breakfast often leads to snacking on less healthy food later in the morning.

Breakfast has to be quick to prepare, nutritious and tasty. By the time you have boiled a kettle for a cup of tea or coffee, you could already have had a bowl of cereal! From TODAY start with a good breakfast!

How to treat and beat your plantar fasciitis- By Melissa Biffi, Biokineticists

The plantar fascia is a thick band of ligaments connecting the heel bone to the toes. It works with the Achilles tendon to store and return energy during specific movements and supports the arch of your foot. For most of you runners suffering from this acute, sometimes chronic heel pain, you’d wonder what the need for your plantar fascia is, if it just causes pain! It does in fact have an important function, to stabilize the forefoot as the force during push off increases.

So if it’s there to help you, why would it cause pain? Often pain results due to strain of the plantar fascia thus causing inflammation, weakness and swelling, making it hard to get around. Why would this happen? Many plantar fasciitis cases are the cause from factors such as tight calves and repetitive hill workouts, however the largest factor is owing to fallen or collapsed arches. Flat footed individuals are more likely to develop and suffer from this condition as collapsed arches places more tension on the fascial ligament thus overloading the attachment at the heel bone.

The most common sort after treatment is to mash your foot out with a ball or an iced bottle. Yes this may help relieve the tension and loosen up the ligament; however this is only temporary, providing an invitation for the pain to return at a later stage. So why deal with the chronic pain when Biokinetics and exercise therapy can completely stomp out that plantar fasciitis. Biokinetics aims to find the cause and deal with it using an individualized and specific exercise intervention. Often enough, the flexor digitorum brevis muscle, or more simply put, the muscle in the sole of your foot is weak, allowing for collapsing in the arch. This may also be combined with overall weakness in the lower limbs and general tightness that needs to be dealt with appropriately and conservatively to prevent further aggravation and even possible heel spurs (bony outgrowths on the heel).

As for you runners looking for a quick fix, it is important not to rush the process and seek proper medical advice and initial supervision when it comes to rehabilitative exercise, whilst trying your best to avoid those corticosteroid injections and surgery to relieve the pain. As biokineticist’s it is our job to treat conservatively and to determine faults in your running technique that may be contributing to your pain. Since foot strike patterns significantly increase tension in the plantar fascia, it is important to avoid mid or forefoot strike. While recovering from the condition, it is recommended that you decrease your stride length and increase your cadence and to wear appropriate shoes with enough support for shock absorption.

With correction in form and general activity and the combination of a rehabilitative exercise program, you may just be able to stomp out your plantar fasciitis and enjoy the open roads and trail runs pain-free.