Brown rice with scrambled eggs and scallion. - PHOTOS BY EMMA SHARP

While most people I know exercise so that they can eat or drink more, I've found that I have to consume a greater number of calories than I normally would if I wish to have more energy. This has become evident to me over the past month.

My workout regime for the last four years has consisted of very little. Among other things, I have simply had little oomph. I have also been wondering how many of my friends manage to go indoor cycling and running so often. I was extremely fit as a teen and in my 20s, so what was different now?

The truth is that, although I eat a wider variety of food than most and am willing to taste anything, I do stick to small portions on the whole. Clearly this is not enough. For the last four weeks, my energy intake has increased by about 500 calories per day, and with that I have afforded myself the luxury of getting fit again through swimming, walking, kick-boxing, and going to Curves gym.

I chose to go to Curves because girlfriends of mine had been raging about the place for months. Many go there to help them lose weight, but some want to gain because they are too skinny.

Gym of choice

It was good fortune, actually, that this was my gym of choice, as the present general manager, Naila Gibson, was very helpful in answering my queries about diet and exercise.

The workout at Curves involves 30 minutes of warm-up, strength training, cardio, cool down and stretching, in an all-female surrounding. You get as much out of it as you put in. So if you're a bit of a weakling, then you don't feel like you're killing yourself. And if you're strong and energetic, and want to sweat, then you simply push yourself harder. Gibson recommends that clients go a minimum of three times per week.

If one is 20 pounds or more overweight upon joining Curves, one is put on a mandatory weight management programme.

This involves two stages of losing weight, and a third stage of maintaining it. For people like me, who are underweight, she recommends that we consume 200-500 calories more per day than usual, depending on how active we are. The days I find working out difficult are exactly the days when I have not eaten breakfast, or when my lunch has only consisted of green salads.

Shed the pounds

Gibson also reiterated to me that even those who are too heavy should not omit any of the food groups, or skip meals, as a way to shed the pounds. It must all be calculated on a calorie-intake basis.

If you attempt to starve yourself for a day, or longer, then you won't be able to maximise the time allocated for your workout. Extreme hunger will then kick in and you might well find yourself bingeing on complete rubbish just to curb your rumbling tummy. Rather than breaking a sweat so that we can open that bar of chocolate, perhaps we should all be eating healthily so that we can exercise efficiently.

Emma's Daily Breakfast:

Pineapple, watermelon, grapefruit and otaheiti smoothie

Brown rice with scrambled eggs and scallion

Smoothie:

1 slice pineapple (3/4 inch thick), cut into chunks

1/2 cup watermelon chunks

Juice of 1 grapefruit

1 large otaheiti apple, cut into chunks

4-6 cubes of ice

Method

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Brown rice with scrambled eggs and scallion:

Breakfast - Pineapple, watermelon, grapefruit and otaheiti smoothie

Ingredients

3/4 cup cooked brown rice, hot1/2 tbs olive oil

2 eggs

Salt and pepper

1tbsp chopped scallion

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a small frying pan on a low heat. 2. Mix the eggs in a bowl with a dash of salt and pepper.3. Add to the warm oil and stir continuously with a rubber 'cake' spatula until cooked. Due to the low heat and stirring, the egg will be very 'creamy' and 'wet'.4. Place the hot rice in a small bowl, scrape the eggs on top, and sprinkle with scallion.