Professional jockeys explain the secrets of staying lean

Jan. 27, 2012 - PRLog -- Anyone with ambitions of losing weight this January is being advised by a top jump jockey and a Professional Jockeys Association nutritionist to avoid diets if they want to achieve long-term success.

According to experts, there are much more successful approaches to both losing weight and keeping it off for the foreseeable future. The comments were made through Lovetheraces.com – part of Racing for Change, the organisation tasked with promoting British horseracing as a fun day out.

Jump Jockey Andrew Thornton said success comes from thinking of diet as a lifestyle.

“If you look at it as a diet, you’ll just come off it,” he warned. “See it as just a healthy way of living.”

His comments were backed by Julia Scott Douglas, a nutrition expert from the Professional Jockeys Association. She said: “A cycle of ‘feasting and famine’ with low calorie diets may work in the short term. But it doesn’t do your health good in the long run and makes it increasingly difficult to lose weight again in the future.”

English-born Thornton is considered tall for a jockey, which means maintaining a healthy weight is vital to ensure he's able to compete. In his career so far, he's won a number of horseracing's most prestigious races – including the King George IV Chase, Cheltenham Gold Cup, Welsh National, Scottish Grand National and Hennessy Gold Cup.

The experts went on to offer some useful tips for people who've made losing weight their New Year's resolution for 2012. These including keeping a food and drink diary, avoiding sudden cuts in food intake, reducing salt and taking time when eating your dinner.

Lovetheraces.com features a wide range of content for racing fans and people thinking about their first trip to a racecourse – including information about what people can expect from a day at the races and details for families seeking ideas for kidskids’ days out.

It also features an up-to-date race calendar, competitions, fashion, star spotting and blog posts by the Voices of the Races – real racegoers who share their experiences of the fun days out that can be enjoyed.

For more information about a day out at the races, visit http://www.lovetheraces.com/a-great-day-out/ today.