Runner-Friendly Fast Food

 1 of 3 

If you’re fed up of ruining your hard work with greasy takeaways, put down the phone and pick up your pinny. With ready-to-use ingredients, you can cook post-run meals that are far healthier – and cheaper – than the ‘goods’ from your local  takeaway.

Ditch: Takeaway cheese and tomato pizza

Switch: Muscle-repairing veg and chicken pizza

Prepared chicken breast strips have a stellar 11:1 protein-to-fat ratio to help build muscle. And pesto, which is full of pine nuts, parmesan and olive oil, provides a tasty shot of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. “Enjoy this right after a run, when you can benefit from the extra sodium found in the packaged ingredients to replace what you lose in sweat,” says sports dietitian and marathoner Rebecca Scritchfield.

Make it!
Place a 12-inch pizza base on a baking sheet and bake at 200C for six minutes, then remove. Cover with 180ml of jarred pesto, then top with rocket, torn ready-cooked chicken breast strips, sliced red peppers, sliced olives, torn fresh basil and a small block of crumbled goat’s cheese. Season and grill for one minute.

Try this: Use baby spinach instead of rocket; sub in low-fat grated mozzarella for goat’s cheese; use wholewheat pittas to make mini pizzas.

Next page