The minimum dietary fibre recommendations are 30 grams for males and 25 grams for females. Consuming enough fibre ultimately comes down to your food choices, and at times it can be particularly challenging to consume enough fibre, especially if your daily calorie intake is low.

The Australian Dietary Guidelines are exactly what they say, guidelines! They were constructed as a framework for healthy eating for the general population to prevent chronic disease. Remember, these guidelines have been generalised for the entire population and therefore are not intended for people who require specific dietary advice.

FODMAPs is a term thrown around fairly often in the health and fitness industry. Let us explain what they really are and why most people do not have to worry about them!

There are two types of failure - muscular failure, and mechanical failure. Read more to understand the difference!

At some point or another we’ve all probably heard, read, and potentially even said “THIS food is a great source of THIS nutrient!” However, it’s important to recognise that there’s a difference between a food HAVING a certain nutrient, and a food being a GOOD SOURCE of that nutrient.

According to the Australian Research Council, research is defined as “The creation of new knowledge and/or the use of existing knowledge in a new and creative way so as to generate new concepts, methodologies, inventions and understandings. This could include synthesis and analysis of previous research to the extent that it is new and creative.”

Brown adipose tissue (BAT), also known as brown fat, is found in much smaller amounts compared to our standard white fat, located deep within the torso and neck. As we know, the role of white fat is to store excess energy which can then be used at a later point. Contrastingly, the job of brown fat is to produce heat when our body is cold, therefore expending energy. Surely then, if we have more brown fat, we can lose more weight?

Do you know these five nutrition facts about vegetables turning your skin orange, cheese, cholesterol in eggs, the skin of fruits and the satiation benefits of potatoes?

Do you know these five nutrition facts about the colour of vegetables, extra virgin vs virgin olive oil, peanuts, Vitamin D and leucine?

Do you know these five nutrition facts about nutritional guidelines, iron in spinach, stomach acid, gluten and lactose-free milk?

Do you know these five nutrition facts about fibre, Himalayan pink salt, mercury in tuna, caffeine and water?

Intermittent fasting (IF) is a form of voluntary energy restriction whereby an individual will choose to consume and then restrict calories in a specific, periodic manner. Various forms of IF have been practiced for centuries by several religions, however one particular variation known as “time-restricted feeding” has gained significant popularity in the health and fitness industry.

The microbiome is talked about frequently in today’s health and fitness industry, but how many people actually know what it is?

How many times have you heard someone say they are going to cut back on their coffee consumption?
Oftentimes coffee is victimized to cover up poor lifestyle, nutrition and exercise habits. Are you tired due to your reliance on coffee or because you only slept 5 hours the night before?

Unfortunately, there can be a large variance in body composition results depending on the testing method used. There are certain procedures that are referenced as gold standard (most accurate tests possible under reasonable conditions), consisting of skinfold assessments, DEXA scans, and hydrostatic weighing. However, a popular method that is not acknowledged as gold standard is bioelectrical impedance, used frequently in bodyweight scales and InBody scans.

Eating vegetables is a win, regardless of whether they are fresh or frozen. However, there may be some points to consider when choosing between the two. Contrary to popular belief, the nutritional value may actually be lower in fresh compared to frozen vegetables! Let us explain…

The truth is… unfortunately it’s impossible to hit your macros to a T. This is because nutrient information panels are created based on averages of averages for certain foods and their respective macronutrient, micronutrient, and total energy content. Therefore, to most people’s surprise, the macros and calories listed on a back of a packet can actually deviate by a whooping 20% compared to their true amount!

When walking down the aisles of the supermarket, what entices you to buy certain products over others? In most cases you can’t smell the product… or see through the packet… so usually you’re influenced by the BIG BOLD LABELS saying “I’M HIGH IN PROTEIN! PICK ME!” *drops into basket without checking the macros or ingredients*

Most individuals who embark on a health and fitness journey strive to positively change their body composition and build more muscle mass. However, there’s arguably nothing more frustrating than feeling as though our results don’t reflect our level of effort and time spent invested in the gym.

There’s no doubt that as competitors we all look forward to peak week! After months of hard work dedicated to dieting, training, blistering our feet while posing and the like, it’s exciting to reach the home stretch before show day! However, bear in mind that this is a week where you should generally be doing LESS, not MORE, in the context of your entire contest prep.