The fastest route to success is consistency
There are no short cuts, no magic workouts. Simply consistency, day in day out, is what will lead to success. As athletes, one of the biggest threats to consistency is getting sick. Therefore try these homemade elixirs to help combat colds and flu.
Fire Cider
This is a general immune tonic, packed full of nutrients to help support your immunity and digestion. You can take it as a drink - eg. a shot of 1-2 tablespoons per day, or you can use it in a hot toddy or punchy salad dressing.
Recipe (there are various recipes out there - the original being the one from Rosemary Gladstar, this is my version)
5 cloves of garlic (crushed and chopped)
1 piece of ginger (chopped)
1 piece of tumeric (chopped)
3 fresh chillies (chopped)
1 lemon (juiced and skin chopped)
1 red onion (roughly chopped)
1 cinnamon stick (crushed)
1 handful of fresh rosemary
1 handful of fresh thyme
1 handful of fresh sage leaves
3 star anise
3 cloves
6 black peppercorns
500ml raw cider vinegar (including the mother)
optional - 2 tablespoons of honey
Method:
Add all the ingredients to a mason jar, add the vinegar (ensuring all the dry ingredients are covered). Store in a cool dark place for at least 4 weeks, shaking regularly to agitate the ingredients, then strain into bottles. This will then store in your fridge for up to 6 months.
Elderberry syrup
This is a Vitamin C rich elderberry syrup which the kids love as it’s sweet (unlike the fire cider!). My kids like it as ‘medicine’ as a tablespoon, or it can be used as a cordial or dessert syrup. It’s a great way to get them out for a walk as we go foraging for elderberries and blackberries.
Recipe:
500g of de-stalked elderberries
500g caster sugar
1 lemon - juiced
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
5 cloves
1 piece of ginger, finely chopped.
Method:
Wash your foraged elderberries and use a fork to strip the berries from their stalks. Put the berries in a saucepan and add the spices, then cover with 1cm of water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20minutes. Leave to cool slightly.
Strain the mixture through a sieve and measure how much liquid you now have. For every 500ml of liquid you will need 400g of sugar. Return the liquid to a clean saucepan, add the lemon juice and sugar. Bring back to a simmer for 10minutes until the sugar has dissolved. Then allow it to cool completely before bottling.
This will store in your fridge for up to 3months.