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Stepping Your Way to Fitness

Want to have buns of steel? Maybe tighten your hamstrings, quads and calves too? Then try running up steps because it is an intense activity both for your heart and legs – you’re moving your bodyweight up the steps against gravity.

If you want to burn a large amount of kilojoules/calories in a relatively short time, running up steps is the way to go. Other benefits of running up steps include:

• It is great cross-training activity.
• It requires less time to do the same intensity of a workout.
• It is an overall body workout – cardiovascular and muscular endurance.

Here are a few tips for running up steps:

• Start slowly and gradually increase your speed and/or the number of steps as you get fitter.
• Run at even pace – don’t go out too hard.
• Pump your arms to help you up the steps. Keep your elbows in, shoulders down (not shrugged) and your arms semi-flexed (like a sprinter).
• Run on your toes and make sure you don’t completely extend your legs – this puts too much strain on your knees.

Why You’re Not Reaching Your Ideal Weight

If you’re trying to lose weight, a reasonable and healthy weight loss should be between 0.5 to 1.0 kg per week. As with any goals, your success will depend on a number of factors, with the most important one being motivation.

Here are some of the more common issues that can impede your weight loss success.

Not eating breakfast or eating breakfast too late

Skipping breakfast might sound like a quick way to cut kilojoules, but this can lead to unhealthy snacking by mid-morning or eating too much at lunch. Studies show people who eat breakfast are more likely to maintain a healthy weight. An ideal breakfast should be high in protein and fibre. To get your metabolism firing early, aim to eat your breakfast before 8am.

Eating dinner too late

Eating too close to bedtime can interrupt your sleep (as your body is busy digesting, it can’t do what it needs to do to prepare you for optimal rest). If you’re regularly eating dinner after 8pm, aim to reduce the portion size at dinner and have a larger lunch followed by a healthy snack (fruit, nuts) at afternoon tea. Allow at least 2 hours between your last meal and sleep. Some studies have shown that having dinner too close to bedtime may result in weight gain as your metabolism slows down when you sleep.

Eating too fast

It takes your brain about 20 minutes to register that there is food in your stomach. Therefore, you’re more likely to overeat if you tend to vacuum down your food. Make sure you chew your food properly to help with its digestion. You will enjoy your meal more if you slow your eating down.

Not enough salad/vegetables at lunchtime

Ideally you will need at least 1-2 cups of salad or vegetables at lunchtime to get the bulk and fibre you need to keep you full throughout the afternoon.

You’re drinking everything except water

Beverages (including those that seem healthy like fruit juices) are probably the biggest hidden source of kilojoules in our diets, especially those that are packed with sugars. Some fruit juices actually have more kilojoules than a can of Coke. And a regular cappuccino has more than twice the amount of kilojoules as a skim cappuccino. For more information, read our recent newsletter.

Your plate is too big

If you tend to eat everything on your plate (probably because you were “brainwashed” by your parents to do so when you were growing up), switch to smaller plates. When you have finished eating, wait 20 minutes (see above) and if you are still hungry, then go back for seconds.

Eating out too many times

For people with a busy lifestyle, eating out is no longer an occasional treat. When you don’t prepare your own meals, you have no control over the ingredients and cooking process.

Eating out and an expanding waistline usually go hand in hand but you can limit the damage by:

• splitting the entree with your partner or a friend;
• order an entree as your main and include a side salad;
• go for less fattening dishes, for example, if you are eating pasta replace cream-based sauces with tomato-based sauces (such as marinara or Napolitana).

You’ve got junk food in your pantry

One of the quickest way to start eating more healthily is to do a pantry makeover. While you are ”de-junking” your pantry (before you succumb to temptation), throw out anything that has either: too little nutritional value (fibre, vitamins, minerals, protein) or too much fat, sodium/salt or sugar.

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About the author: Andrew is the owner and principal trainer of Health Jigsaw. He has trained hundreds of clients of all ages with varying levels of fitness, from beginners to professional athletes and performers.

Contact us if you want to make positive changes to your health, lifestyle, self-confidence and general outlook in life.

Get The Most Out Of Your Workouts

Some of us train within our comfort zones, but if you keep doing the same thing all the time you won’t see any improvements. If you’re not trimming down, toning up, or feeling any fitter, it could be because you’ve hit a plateau. There are many reasons why this can happen, but you can change things up and get back to achieving results.

Vary your workouts or activities to avoid boredom.

You Always Run at the Same Pace

If you want to increase your speed, interval training is the way to go as you’re teaching your muscles to use energy more efficiently so you can go faster.

If you’re running on a treadmill, start by warming up at a easy pace, then run at your normal pace for one minute followed by running at slightly faster pace for a minute, back to your normal pace for a minute, and so on. If you’re outside, you can use telegraph poles as markers – run at your normal pace past 4 poles, then increase your pace past 4 poles and back to your normal pace past another 4 poles.

The aim is to gradually lengthen the faster-paced intervals and increase the tempo.

You Do Whatever

Do you walk into the gym and then decide what what exercises you’re going to do? Do you know the reps, sets, tempo and rest you’re going to use? To achieve results, what you train, when you train, how you train and even why you train, should be included in your program (which needs to be specific to you and your goals).

You’re Doing the Same Weight Circuit as Last Year
If you’ve noticed that the circuit seems easy, it’s because your muscles have adapted to the circuit and are bored with doing the same exercises. To become stronger, you need to continuously challenge your muscles by mixing things up, such as using machines, free weights, resistance bands or your body weight. You can also play around with the number of sets and reps, amount of weight, length of rest periods between sets and the overall number and order of exercises.

You Only Cycle or Do Yoga

There is nothing wrong with cycling or yoga but if they are the only form of exercise you do, then try other activities. It’s all about challenging your body and keeping your regime interesting. Choose something that you and your family/friends will enjoy. Or set yourself a goal to do the Sydney to Gong Ride, City to Surf or a half marathon for the first time.

See A Personal Trainer’s Week for more ideas on what you can do or get involved with some of the social events that Health Jigsaw organises each month.

Eat What You Want

Just because you’re doing some exercise it doesn’t mean you can eat McDonald’s or KFC everyday. As discussed in The 70-30 Rule, your diet is the most factor in a healthy lifestyle. Eating not only involves what you eat, but also how much you eat and your emotions play a big part as well.

Your Recovery

If you are constantly smashing yourself you can end up overtraining, which can sometimes be worse than under training. Your body needs sufficient time between workouts to recovery properly.

Recovery also involves getting enough quality sleep each night. Try not to be watch TV or have bright lights on just before going to bed as it could taking you longer to fall asleep. The body uses the time while you are asleep to recover, both physiologically and psychologically (see Keys To Better Sleep).

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Please note that before you begin any fitness program, consult your doctor first, especially if you are over 40 years old, have health related issues or have not exercised for an extended period of time.

City to Surf – Before, During and After

There are now just 10 days before the City to Surf. Hopefully you’ve got time set aside for one more long training session to prepare you for the day. Here are a few tips to help you before, during and after the big day.

The Day/Night Before the Run

To ensure that you have enough energy to get you through the race, it is recommended that you eat a low-fat, carbohydrate-rich meal the night before. You can’t really go wrong with pasta with tomato-based sauce. And definitely NO ALCOHOL!!

Make sure you drink enough water so that your urine is pale to clear throughout the day.

The Morning of the Run

Get up early to eat (at least 2 hours before your starting time) and maintain your hydration. Examples of a good breakfast include:

• Cereal or porridge with low-fat milk and fruit.
• Toast or muffin with honey, jam, marmalade or Vegemite.
• Sandwich with banana and honey.
• Smoothie with low-fat milk, low-fat yoghurt and fruit.
• Low-fat cereal or sports bar.
• Fresh fruit salad with low-fat yoghurt.

Wear some old clothes to keep warm and then you can discard them before the start. They will be collected and given to charity.


During the Run

Have at least one drink at each of the 6 drink stations spread out over the 14 km course:

• Station 1 (water only) – Cranebrook Rose Bay (at about the 3.5 km mark).
• Station 2 (water & Gatorade) – Lyne Park Rose Bay (just after the 5 km mark).
• Station 3 (water & Gatorade) – Vaucluse (at about the 7.5 km mark).
• Station 4 (water only) – Kimberley Reserve Vaucluse (at about the 9 km mark).
• Station 5 (water & Gatorade) – Dudley Page Reserve Dover Heights (at about the 10 km mark).
• Station 6 (water only) – North Bondi opposite golf course (just after the 12 km mark).

While Heartbreak Hill gets all the attention, don’t forget about the rise up through Edgecliff and the incline not long after Heartbreak Hill. When you run up hills keep upright, do not bend over at the waist thinking that you are leaning in to the hill. Make sure you run with your shoulders relaxed, chest up, pushing your hips through, this will allow your hips to get full extension and get better leg drive.

After the Run

Stretch, re-hydrate and eat (this does not mean sit on beach, alcohol and McDonalds). To help your recovery, jump in the surf to “ice” the legs. This will constrict blood vessels and decreases metabolic activity, which reduces swelling and tissue breakdown. Once out of the surf the underlying tissues will warm up, causing a return of faster blood flow, which helps return the by-products of cellular breakdown to the lymph system for efficient recycling by the body.

Most Important Tip

Have fun – it is a FUN RUN, so soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the day!!

City to Surf – What to Eat

There are now less four weeks to the City to Surf. How is your training going?

Less than 4 weeks to go now.

So far we’ve covered how to get started and training for Heartbreak Hill. Another important part of your preparation is what you eat before and after your training. Running is a fantastic way to shed some unwanted kilos – you can burn between 2,000 and 3,500 kilojoules (kJ) per hour, depending on a number of factors such as your weight, sex and pace.

Here are a few tips to get the most out of your training.

1. If you’re planning to train before breakfast, you need to eat some carbohydrates the night before. There’s been a lot written about carbohydrates but your body needs carbohydrates for energy, especially if you are training for the City to Surf. You can get away with a low-carbohydrate diet if you are sitting in front of a computer or TV all day, but not if you are exercising.
2. To stay hydrated, water is your best option. You don’t really need sports drinks, energy drinks, vitamin water, soft drinks or fruit juices, especially if you’re trying to watch your weight. A bottle of Powerade (600 ml) has around 800 kJ, Red Bull (250 ml can) has 500 kJ, Lucozade (300 ml bottle) has 880 kJ, Coke (375 ml can) has 680 kJ and Boost Juice (450 ml cup) has 545-880 kJ.
3. After your training session, you will need to re-hydrate your body. Weigh yourself before and after your session and for every kilogram of weight loss, drink that amount in litres as a minimum (1.5 times is optimal).
4. Some research has shown that combining carbohydrates with protein in the proportion of 4:1 (four grams of carbohydrate to one gram of protein) and within 30 minutes post exercise is critical to recovery and improves your ability to train consistently. Protein provides the amino acids needed to rebuild muscle tissue. Some quick and easy recovery snacks include: low fat chocolate milk; small tub of yoghurt; poached egg on wholegrain toast; peanut butter sandwich with wholegrain bread; sushi roll.

City to Surf Training

Whether you’re walking, jogging or running the City to Surf, hopefully you’re well into your training as there are now less than 6 weeks to go. As mentioned in our newsletter last month, interval training is one of the best ways to increase your fitness. Set yourself targets to achieve in each training session and train with a friend to make it easier to stay motivated.

Don't forget to train for Heartbreak Hill

For most people, the hardest part of the City to Surf is the 2 km ascent from Rose Bay to Vaucluse, otherwise known as “Heartbreak Hill”. To best prepare yourself for this, you should incorporate some hill training. If you’re training outdoors, choose a route with 1 or 2 challenging hills. If you’re training on a treadmill, set the incline at around 5%.

Don’t forget to take it easy when you’re starting off as hill training can be hard on your calf muscles. Then gradually build up to longer durations as you get fitter.

Food For Thought – Morning Tea

There are many foods that you come across everyday which you know taste great but are probably on the “naughty” side. You’ve got the choice to eat it or if your will power is strong enough, say “NO” and choose healthier options. Hopefully if you choose to eat it, you do so in moderation.

Below is a table showing the amount of energy in each food item that you may come across at morning tea and the approximate amount of time you need to walk or run to burn it off.

You’re more likely to say “NO” to the above foods if you think about the amount of exercise you will need to do to burn it off . Some healthier options for morning tea include: fruit, small tub of low-fat yoghurt, nuts (small handful only), dried fruit.

Healthy Numbers

Our lives are constantly surrounded by numbers such as phone numbers, PINs, credit card numbers, prices of good and services, post codes and date of birth.

We all know that there are 206 bones in the human body but the numbers that matter most are the ones that you should aim for to achieve or maintain a healthy body.

120/80

Blood pressure is the force of the blood pushing against the walls of the arteries. Each time the heart beats, it pumps out blood into the arteries. A blood pressure reading below 120/80 mmHg (millimetres of mercury) is considered normal. High blood pressure is often called the silent killer because it usually has no symptoms. Some people may not find out they have it until they have trouble with their heart, brain or kidneys. Therefore it is important to have regular check-ups of your blood pressure. High blood pressure over a period of time can contribute to many illnesses, including heart attack, kidney failure or stroke.


0.8 and 0.9

The waist to hip ratio (WHR) looks at the proportion of fat stored on your body around your waist and hips and is a simple but useful measure of fat distribution. Most people store their body fat in two distinct areas: around their waist and around their hips. Women should aim for a WHR of 0.8 or less, while men should aim for a WHR of 0.9 or less. If you have more fat around your waist you have a greater risk of lifestyle related diseases such as obesity, diabetes, stroke, coronary heart disease and high blood pressure than those with weight around their hips and thighs.


80 and 94

As mentioned above, if you have more fat around your waist you have a greater risk of lifestyle related diseases. If the measurement around your waist is more than 80 centimetres for women or 94 centimetres for men, it is time for you to take action. You are in a high risk category if your waist is more than 88 centimetres for women, or more than 102 centimetres for men. For more information, go to measureup.gov.au.


30

For optimal health, everyone should exercise or be active for a minimum of 30 minutes each day. If you’re trying to shrink your waistline, you will need to increase the duration (to at least 60) and intensity of your physical activity. As a rough guide, when you’re exercising your heart rate should be between 60% to 80% of your maximum heart rate. Your maximum heart rate is approximately 220 minus your age.


2 and 5

Most Australians eat only half the amount of fruit and vegetables recommended for good health. Adults need to eat at least 2 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegetables each day. As a guide a serve of fruit is 150 grams (a medium-sized apple, 2 apricots or a cup of chopped fruit) and a serve of vegetable is 75 grams (1/2 cup of cooked vegetables, a medium potato or 1 cup of salad). For more information, go to gofor2and5.com.au.


2

Our body is made up of 60% to 75% water. We can last weeks without food, but only days without water. If you regularly don’t drink enough water there is some increased risk of kidney stones and, in women, urinary tract infections. Around 2 litres of water should be consumed each day, and more if you are exercising, living in hot or humid environments or breastfeeding (for women).


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Cigarettes – you should not be smoking!!

Vegetarian Diets

People practice a vegetarian lifestyle for various reasons. The four main types of vegetarians are:

• Strict vegetarian or vegan – excludes all animal products such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, milk, cheese and other dairy products.
• Lacto-vegetarian – excludes meat, poultry, fish and eggs but includes dairy products.
• Lacto-ovovegetarian – excludes meat, poultry and fish but includes eggs and dairy products.
• Flexitarian – a semi-vegetarian diet with a focus on vegetarian food but will occasionally eat meat.

It doesn’t matter which category of vegetarian you fall into, or if you are considering becoming a vegetarian, to maintain a healthy diet you need to choose a variety of foods which include whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds. This is because some important nutrients and vitamins (see below) found in animal products may be missing from your diet.

• Iron - Good sources of iron include dark green vegetables (like spinach), broccoli, dried fruits, prune juice, oatmeal, nuts and potatoes (eaten with skin). Eating foods rich in vitamin C (citrus fruits, orange juice, tomatoes, broccoli, capsicum, strawberries) at each meal increases iron absorption.
• Vitamin B12 – This vitamin is found in animal foods (including eggs and diary products), which normally is not a concern for vegetarians who eat some dairy products or eggs. However, strict vegetarians or vegans may need to take a vitamin B12 (cobalamin) supplement.
• Calcium - If dairy products are not included in your diet, adequate amounts of calcium can be obtained from plant foods, such as leafy green vegetables, broccoli, beans, tofu, almonds, sesame seeds and sesame butter (tahini), figs, rice milk, soy milk.
• Protein - Protein is found in most plant foods as well as animal foods. Good sources of protein include beans, whole grains, soy products, nuts and seeds, quinoa, dairy products, eggs.

So, if you are or are considering becoming a vegetarian, keep in mind to maintain a healthy diet.

One Kilogram of Fat

We eat food to fuel our bodies for energy, growth and repair. However, when we regularly eat more energy than our body needs, the excess is stored inside fat cells. There are roughly 37,000 kilojoules (kJ) in one kilogram of fat.

To lose a kilogram of body fat in a week, you would need to cut back your food intake and/or work off 37,000 kJ, or around 5,000 kJ a day.

Physical Activity

Physical activity not only burns up stored energy but can also help increase muscle development (in particular resistance or weight training) and the more muscle tissue you have, the more kilojoules you can burn.

The amount of kilojoules you burn will depend on number of factors such as your age, sex, body type, exercise intensity and duration. The average man can burn around 1,100 kJ/hour walking and 3,000 kJ/hour running while the average woman can burn 825 kJ/hour walking and 2,250 kJ/hour running.

Food Intake

What you put in your mouth is in fact more important than the amount of physical activity you partake. As noted in our previous blog post, The 70-30 Rule, 70% of your fat loss effort should be spent on nutrition and 30% on exercise. For most people it’s the 70% that’s the hardest. If you eat a large serving of creamy pasta and wash it down with a couple glasses of wine after your run, you will actually be eating more kilojoules than you burned off.

The keys to healthy eating are to eat more vegetables and whole grains, watch the portion sizes, be careful of what you drink (especially alcohol) and everything in moderation.

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Reasonable and healthy weight loss should be between 0.5 to 1.0 kg per week for most people. By increasing your level of physical activity and reducing your overall kilojoule intake, you will be able to lose those 37,000 kJ without much trouble. Stay focused, motivated and you should be able to shed that kilogram of body fat in no time.

Food Labelling Tricks

Food manufacturing companies spend millions of dollars researching consumer behaviour in order to develop tactics to make you to buy more of their products.

Sun Rice's brown rice is "cholesterol free" and "gluten free".

Be careful of tricks that food manufacturers use to entice you to think that the products have certain health benefits.

In the above photo, Sun Rice has “cholesterol free” and “gluten free” printed on the front of its brown rice packages, which basically is stating the obvious. Foods from plants do not contain cholesterol (all foods from animals contain some cholesterol) while gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, triticale and oats, not rice.

Other tricks food manufacturers use include:

• “Light” or “lite” may sound healthy, but it may not necessarily mean low-calorie or even low-fat. It may just be light in colour, taste or texture (for example, it may mean the olive oil doesn’t taste too strong or the chips are lightly salted).
• “No flavours added” doesn’t mean no MSG as it is a flavour enhancer, not a flavour.
• Reduced-fat does not necessarily mean low-fat as one brand’s reduced-fat could still have more fat than another brand’s regular. The best way to be sure is to compare the nutrition panels of both products.

The 70-30 Rule

If you’re serious about losing those unwanted kilos, then you need to follow the ’70-30 Rule’, which basically means that 70% of your effort should be spent on nutrition and 30% on exercise. And for most people it’s the 70% that’s the hardest.

Eating not only involves what you eat, but also how much you eat and your emotions play a big part as well. Here are five nutritional tips to help you achieve the 70%:

• Try drinking a large glass of water 10 to 15 minutes before a meal. The water will partially fill your stomach and may reduce your hunger levels. 
• If you find yourself eating chocolate or lollies in between meals, try eating a handful of unsalted nuts instead. While some nuts are relatively high in fat, the fat they contain is the ‘good’ fat that our body needs to stay healthy. 
• If you are a weekend food binger, plan your meals and snacks ahead so you have plenty of healthier snacking options in the house. 
• Use smaller plates to control the portion sizes as most of us will eat everything on our plates. If you are still hungry, wait 20 minutes before going for seconds. 
• When eating out, always choose the smallest portion size available and fill up with a side salad (preferably one without the creamy dressing).

Exercise For Your Body and Mind

We all know that exercise is good for us physically, but it can also strengthen the mind and improve our mood.

Research has found that:

• Exercise can improve a person’s mood and mental performance. 
• Active people are generally happier and are less prone to depression. 
• Active seniors suffer less cognitive decline than sedentary ones. 
• Aerobic exercise may make us sharper at any age. 
• When sedentary people become active, they get better at switching from one task to another, and their memories improve. 
• Besides improving circulation, exercise causes chemical changes within the brain, by boosting the activity of mood-enhancing neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin. 
• Exercise triggers the release of endorphins – chemicals that blunt pain and foster relaxation.

Making the Most of Your Metabolism

The word metabolism is derived from Greek and simply means ‘change’ or ‘transformation’.  Human metabolism represents the sum total of all physical and chemical changes that take place within the body; the transformation of food into energy, the formation of new compounds such as hormones, the growth of bone and muscle tissue, the destruction of body tissues, and a host of other processes.

Metabolism aids digestive function as well as absorption of nutrients and is most affected by nutrition, hydration and physical activity.  Each of these factors is an imperative contributor to optimum metabolic health.  When any one of them is deficient, the metabolic rate decreases.  Consequently, weight loss and weight maintenance are directly related to healthy metabolism.

While lowering your kilojoules/calorie and fat intakes may be important components of weight loss, both decrease your metabolism, making it essential to stimulate the metabolic rate through other means such as routine physical activity.  It is not a good idea to skip meals or to reduce kilojoules/calories by a large amount, since decreased metabolism causes the body to burn fewer kilojoules/calories and less fat.  It may also cause your body to store excess fat in reserve, defeating the object of the lower kilojoule/calorie intake.

Human metabolic rate reflects how rapidly the body is using its energy stores and this rate can vary depending on a number of factors, the most influential one being exercise.

Simple ideas to increase your metabolism:

1. Always eat breakfast in the morning.  Breakfast is a great way to break the fast.  Whilst research has shown that breakfast causes only a slight increase in metabolic rate (mainly due to the energy cost of digesting and absorbing food), it does in fact help boost your energy levels and improve concentration.
2. Increase the amount of everyday activity.  As a person becomes fitter and gains muscle mass, they increase the amount of calories burnt at rest, plus they are more likely to use fat as a fuel source.  However, the energy intake needs to be sufficient to meet the demands of your exercise program.  If there is too little energy intake this imbalance may eventually reduce resting metabolic rate.
3. Start doing some resistance/weight training which will help to increase your muscle mass.  The more muscle you have, the more kilojoules/calories you burn regardless of how active you are or how old you are.  As we age our muscle mass decreases.  Adding resistance training to your workouts will help to maintain muscle mass.
4. Eat foods that contain capsaicin, such as hot chillies.  These types of food may elevate metabolism slightly and research has shown that eating them actually suppresses appetite, therefore reducing food intake.
5. Keep the fluids up.  Hydration levels are extremely important in the role of metabolism, as over 70 per cent of bodily functions take place in water, so insufficient water causes all of your systems to slow down.  Aim to drink at least two litres per day, increase this amount if you are exercising, especially in a humid environment.
6. Make sure you are getting enough sleep.  Regular sleep is important in maintaining optimal metabolic function.

The most important factor that can increase the metabolic rate in general is exercise.  Any physical activity will raise the metabolic rate, and will keep it slightly elevated post exercise.

Source: Australian Fitness Network

Better Out Than In

A recent review carried out by a team at the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in the UK has concluded that there are benefits to mental and physical well-being from taking exercise outdoors.

The study found that “Most trials showed an improvement in mental well-being: compared with exercising indoors, exercising in natural environments was associated with greater feelings of revitalization, increased energy and positive engagement, together with decreases in tension, confusion, anger and depression.

Participants also reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with outdoor activity and stated that they were more likely to repeat the activity at a later date.” The one area that the study did not measure was the long-term effects of exercise in natural environments and whether or not participants were able to stick to a routine.

Most of Health Jigsaw’s training sessions are conducted outdoors, which can make you feel invigorated, refreshed and alive. They also provide most people with a change of environment in their day, from an air-conditioned office to the fresh air of the local parks, ovals, beaches or even their own backyard. Being outdoors can also help increase your body’s stores of vitamin D.

Salt & High Blood Pressure

In our previous blog post, we discussed how high blood pressure (or hypertension) can be impacted by lifestyle factors such as a high salt intake.

So how does salt increase blood pressure?

When our salt (sodium chloride) intake levels are very high, the kidneys cannot keep up with the excretion and the salt ends up in our bloodstream.  The body compensates by retaining more fluid to dilute the sodium levels, which increases blood volume.  This then raises blood pressure as the heart has to work harder to pump the larger volume of blood around the body.

Only about 25 per cent of our sodium intake comes from the salt shaker.  The rest is hidden in processed foods that have salt added during manufacturing.  One gram (1000 milligrams) of salt has 400 mg sodium.

The National Health and Medical Research Council has set an ‘Adequate Intake’ of 460–920 mg of sodium (equivalent to 1.15–2.3 grams of salt) per day and a ‘Suggested Dietary Target’ of 1600 mg of sodium (about 4 grams of salt) for Australian adults.  However, most Australians have a daily salt intake of about 10 grams.  The recommended amount of sodium for people with hypertension is about 1500 mg a day.

Salt is listed on nutrition panels as sodium.  Foods with less than 120 mg per 100 grams are low in salt, while foods with more than 500 mg per 100 grams are high in salt.

Luckily, the food industry has been involved in reformulating some products to reduce salt levels.  For example, Vegemite has been reducing its salt content since 1974 and now has 13 per cent less salt than the original recipe.

Here are a few tips to reduce salt in your diet:

• Eat more fresh food (plant or animal).
• Use herbs, olive oil or lemon juice to enhance flavours instead of adding salt.
• Compare food labels when shopping and look for foods labeled ‘no added salt’ or ‘salt reduced’.
• Buy reduced-salt bread and breakfast cereals. A slice of commercial brand bread can have up to 200 mg of sodium.
• Stay away from highly processed products such as instant noodles and pastas, canned soups and dehydrated soup mixes.
• Cut back on processed meats like salami, ham, corned beef, bacon, smoked meats/salmon, sausages and chicken loaf.
• Limit takeaway foods, especially pizza, burgers, pies and sausage rolls. When possible, choose low salt options such as a salad.
• Use fresh or frozen vegetables as canned vegetables have a higher salt content.
• Try and avoid frozen meals, canned meat/fish, potato chips, cheese, ready-made salad dressings, soy sauce, tomato sauce and mayonnaise as they are high in sodium.