Racing Weight Cookbook: Lean, Light Recipes for Athletes (Racing Weight Series)

(SOMEWHAT) SHORT REVIEWMatt Fitzgerald and Georgie Fear have partnered to create “Racing Weight Cookbook. Lean, Light Recipes for Athletes”. Matt is an endurance sports writer and a certified sports nutritionist. Georgie is a registered dietician who blogs at askgeorgie.com and runs a habit coaching and nutrition internet-based business with her husband. Her solo cookbook “Fuel Up” is also available on Amazon. (Additional info at the LONG REVIEW below.)While the preface of the book indicates that it is intended primarily for endurance athletes, it also correctly notes that athletes and non-athletes alike will find the book full of healthy meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner choices divided into separate sections for the person with no kitchen skills, medium skills, and for those who love to cook.Each of the three sections has a wide variety of selections, flavors, and textures. There is sure to be something you haven't tried before, or perhaps even combinations of foods you’ve never contemplated, that you will find delicious. Beautiful photography accompanies each recipe.The section for beginner cooks could easily be alternatively titled, “When You Don’t Have Time” because these are for the most part quick “assembly” recipes that are hugely better than sticking a bag of processed nonsense into the microwave.Each section also contains "Concepts and Tips" geared toward that section's target audience. Examples include how to prepare eggs three ways and what a well-stocked freezer should contain.The Introduction is extremely valuable - don’t skip it as it will help you get the most out of the book and the recipes. After the Introduction is a "Practical Tips" section regarding shopping, cooking, and leftovers.At the rear of the book you will find Imperial and Metric conversion and equivalent tables and a nutrient content guide for the recipes. Sections include page references to recipes that are high carb, high protein, good for recovery, or vegetarian.Purchase this cookbook; you’ll be glad you did. I’m off to make some wasabi meatballs!!!LONG REVIEWMatt Fitzgerald and Georgie Fear have partnered to create “Racing Weight Cookbook. Lean, Light Recipes for Athletes”. Matt is an endurance sports writer and a certified sports nutritionist. Georgie is a registered dietician who blogs at askgeorgie.com and runs a habit coaching and nutrition internet-based business with her husband. Her solo cookbook “Fuel Up” is also available on Amazon.Full disclosure: I stumbled upon askgeorgie.com near the end of the weight-loss phase of my journey in late 2012. In early 2013, wanting to be able to maintain my weight, I joined her online nutrition and habit forming online group. She and her husband are both extremely knowledgeable and caring people who truly enjoy sharing their talents to bring the most out of their clients.Their new website, onebyonenutrition.com, will be going live some time in 2014, so for now just check out askgeorgie.com to get a feel for Georgie’s writing and numerable delicious recipes. You can also contact her through that site.Okay, let’s review this book!While the preface of the book indicates that it is intended primarily for endurance athletes, it also correctly notes that athletes and non-athletes alike will find the book full of healthy meals. Further, "Racing Weight" has breakfast, lunch, and dinner choices for the person with no kitchen skills (or just when you need to prepare something quickly) as well as for the culinarily (is that even a word?) experienced.Because this is a book ostensibly geared toward the endurance athlete many of the recipes have non-vegetable carbohydrates and, therefore, are calorie dense. You can easily substitute say, spiralized zucchini for Soba noodles or spaghetti squash for pasta. These are just examples; take a cue from the book and be creative.“Racing Weight” is broken down into three sections for the person 1) "Who Doesn't Cook"; 2) "With Some Cooking Experience"; and 3) "Who Loves to Cook".Each of the three sections has a wide variety of selections, flavors, and textures. There is sure to be something you haven't tried before, or perhaps even combinations of foods you’ve never contemplated, that you will find delicious. Beautiful photography by Peter Bagi accompanies each recipe.I'm going to quibble with the title of the first section because I think it's great as well when you have no time and need something quick, irrespective of cooking skills. This section is essentially an "assemble pre-existing parts" exercise (and I mean that in a good way). For example, right out of the gate (see what I did there with the racing term?) the first recipe, "Winner's Circle Yogurt", (see what they did there with the recipe title?) is yogurt, whole-grain cereal, fruit, nuts, and seeds. No cooking necessary! (But you will have to go shopping - the book is not interactive. :) ) There are a few recipes in this section that call for some baking time or (Get a loved one to hold your hand before I tell you. Ready? Brace yourself.) boil water. Compose yourself before going on with this review.The next two sections call for increasing levels of comfort in the kitchen, but nothing is so difficult to require a degree from the CIA (that's Culinary Institute of America for all you conspiracy theorists). You should even find as you work your way through the book that your kitchen skills progressively improve.Each section also contains "Concepts and Tips" geared toward that section's target audience. Don't know how to prepare eggs three ways? Section 1 shows you how to prepare scrambled, fried, and hard-boiled eggs. There are also tips on whole-grain bread, nut butters and even purchasing pre-washed greens. Section 2 talks about wild versus farmed salmon, how to eat healthy anywhere, and brown rice among other tips. Section 3 contains tips on preparing veggies for the entire week ahead, what a well-stocked freezer should contain, and food storage.After a short preface, there is an extremely valuable Introduction. Do not skip this as it will help you get the most out of the book and the recipes. It talks about "scoring your diet quality". Each recipe includes a Diet Quality Score and all you have to add is "1"s and "2"s to determine your daily score to compare against an included table. Additional sections within the Introduction include "Managing Your Appetite", "Eating Just Enough", "Balance Your Energy Sources" (carbs, fat, and protein); "Monitor Yourself"; as well as on nutrition; racing weight, etc.After the Introduction is a "Practical Tips" section regarding shopping (in-store, at farmers markets, and online), cooking, and leftovers.At the rear of the book you will find Imperial and Metric conversion and equivalent tables and a nutrient content guide for the recipes. Sections include page references to recipes that are high carb, high protein, good for recovery, or vegetarian. For the first three areas just noted, a “V” indicates if the recipe is also vegetarian.Purchase this cookbook; you’ll be glad you did. I’m off to make some wasabi meatballs!!!

I purchased this cookbook as a companion to Georgie Fear’s “Lean Habits” book. I’ve been working with the concepts in that book and I’ve managed to lose over 75 lbs so far in about 1.5 yrs. Georgie often references the recipes in this book, so I figured I might as well add it to my collection.About that title: “Racing Weight Cookbook: Lean, Light Recipes for Athletes.” Don’t let that scare you if you’re not a “serious” athlete. Tasty food is tasty whether you’re a marathon runner or a casual walker or physically challenged. I'm 65 yrs old, and about as far from being an athlete as you can get without being dead. I’m always on the lookout for cookbooks that feature health-conscious tasty recipes that are easy to prepare and “make sense.”This is one of those cookbooks. Good solid recipes with lots of flavor that are easy to make.Recipes are separated into categories: Level 1: Recipes for the Athlete Who Doesn’t Cook; Level 2: Recipes for the Athlete with Some Cooking Experience; and Level 3: Recipes for the Athlete Who Loves to Cook. Within each Level, there are sections for “Breakfast” and “Lunch & Dinner” recipes.I’m comfortable in the kitchen — I love to cook, and complicated recipes don’t scare me, but for my day-to-day cooking, I prefer non-complicated recipes with ingredients and instructions that can basically fit on 1-2 pages. These pass that test. Even the more complicated recipes (Level 3) are fairly simple with easy to find ingredients.I’ve had this book look enough to have several favorites that I make over and over. I’m including one from each “Level”Level 1: Baked Portobello with TomatoUsing the large portobello mushroom caps as a substitute for a burger isn’t new, but this is a great recipe for someone not familiar with the concept to get into it in an easy tasty way. This one uses balsamic vinegar as a glaze while baking the mushroom caps. Halfway through the baking process, you add a slice of tomato and sprinkle with dried basil and garlic powder. I serve these on whole wheat hamburger buns with a little honey mustard and fresh lettuce. Sometimes, I add a slice of part-skin mozzarella in the last 5-10 minutes of cooking. So simple to prepare and yummy. The only changes I’ve made to this is that I use fresh basil and garlic instead of dried, and I remove the gills from the mushrooms before cooking.Level 2: Roasted Red Pepper & Red Lentil SoupYou cook the lentils first with broth, onion, and garlic, then add the roasted red peppers (I use <jarred variety> and blend until smooth. The recipe says to do this in a blender; I do it in the saucepan with an immersion blender with great results. Super yummy, low calorie (226cal), and high fiber & protein. I make this fairly often (maybe twice a month). I eat this with some Wasa or Finn Crisp crackers and some fresh fruit for a great meal.Level 3: Vegetable FrittataThe keyword here is “Vegetable” — LOTS of vegetables, at least 3 Cups, plus a large tomato chopped, eggs + egg substitute, and mozzarella cheese. The beauty of a recipe like this is that you can substitute different vegetables depending on what’s in season. The original calls for mushrooms, bell peppers, and onion. You cook them briefly in a skillet with a little oil, then add the eggs, tomato, cheese and pop everything into the oven to bake until set. I’ve done this with asparagus, broccoli, rainbow carrots (sweeter than the usual plain orange ones), bok choi — just pre-cook them a little in the skillet before adding the egg mixture and bake as directed. SO yummy! I make this about once a month in a 10” oven-proof skillet, then divide it into 6 portions to freeze for a quick zap in the microwave for breakfast with some fruit. This is my “go to” frittata recipe. It also turns into a quiche if you bake it in a crust (the recipe makes enough for two 9” pies).So there it is. This is a good book for a novice cook, but there’s enough here for a more experienced cook to use and customize. And while it’s targeted to athletes, they don’t have a monopoly on good tasty food. Highly recommended! Solid 5-stars.

What a great and super user-friendly cookbook.

Have been doing the recipes for the last week and a bit on the quick start diet.We’re only trying to lose between 6-9lb each so not much. The recipe descriptions are not written well in my opinion, the portion guidelines are all over the place and difficult to interpret, many of the ingredients seem local to North America. You can get the general principles from racing weight quick start. But we’re both sat here scratching our heads over what we’re going to eat tomorrow night. I don’t think the authors have real jobs where they are based in a work location and cant cook for most of the day. I’m definately in a deficit by the time I come home so I guess that bit works. We will see after the 4 weeks but I’m not convinced. The layout is also abysmal. Recipes for athletes that don’t cook versus ones that do. None of them are difficult and it would be much better with all breakfasts lunches and dinners in order.

Not keen on recipes.

Brilliant Book

Just what you need to bring you right up to-date with the research evidence and great ideas for putting theory into practice.

Some good ideas for easy meals for runners which take no time at all. When I'm tried I like the fact you can create a meal in 20mins.