Weight Management

With all the over indulgence of Easter eggs this second article is going to explore the world of dieting and the relationship we have with our food and drink.

Thousands upon thousands of us are lured by the marketing exploits of the diet industry every year. Unfortunately dieting simply doesn't work. To make a lasting difference we need to instead change the way we eat and change our emotional relationship to food. As I said in the first article last month, with both diet and exercise, a long term perspective is imperative to success.

In our thoughts often food is seen as the enemy and consequently short term fixes are implemented. However, when certain foods are being denied you crave them even more. Diets are unnatural and don't teach good lifestyle habits for long term weight management. Physiologically too they are very detrimental. When the body is in famine (fad dieting) the metabolic rate is being affected negatively, the very opposite of the desired effect. Damaging the body's metabolism is the very reason why, after a diet, you often put more weight back on than before the diet!

During the average day your energy levels fluctuate due to factors such as tiredness, exercise and glucose levels (food). When our energy levels dip, we crave sugary foods and drinks, grazing often on whatever we can find. The key therefore is to not allow these energy levels to fall and instead eat and drink regularly and nutritionally.

So my top tips are...

1.       Eat little and often - topping up energy levels constantly and having a good balance of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

2.       Cut down on the sugary foods and drinks - whilst these give you energy quickly they also make you hungry afterwards more quickly.

3.       Eat a balanced diet - cutting out processed meals and meals that have little or no nutritional value.

4.       Avoid too much caffeine - Like the sugar affect coffee and the like give only a short term energy lift.

5.       Reduce alcohol - Very little nutrition and many calories are contained alongside other negatives.

6.       Use common sense and enjoy an array of healthy foods and drinks.

Oliver Kelly 2010 ©