There are different ways to evaluate progress. . Weighing yourself once or twice a week can be a reasonable indicator of the effects your new healthy eating plan is having. But relying solely on the weighing scales is not really a good way to gauge your progress over the long term. Because it’s not 100% accurate, you can end up feeling frustrated and demotivated by the results. Especially if you are one of those…
Read More
Whatever you eat and drink, the process of digestion is made up of a combination of different chemical reactions that start working as soon as you start to eat or drink. The chemicals involved reduce the food to blocks of nutrients for absorption for use by the body. Every piece of food we eat is composed of fats, carbohydrates (also known as starches) and proteins. These are known as Macronutrients. Each macronutrient must be broken…
Read More
What is it that you want to change for yourself? What are your targets for your health that you want to get right this time? Change isn’t easy, and it’s rarely fast. The initial decision to change can be fast – can be overnight. Something happens, someone says something – and we decide that enough is enough. It could be a comment from a friend or loved one, it could be that an outfit doesn’t…
Read More
Our brains are amazing. It’s in control of every emotion and reaction, and therefore behaviour. And (mostly) unconsciously, every aspect of the body’s functions, such as breathing, healing, digestion, muscle movement, sight and sound etc etc! How do we do all this? And, in most part, very successfully? When we’re looking at the behaviour side, on a daily basis, our minds are bombarded with information from our senses (sight, sound, touch, smell, taste). And the…
Read More
In September 2016, I decided to book a Christmas holiday. A friend asked if she could come with me and we agreed to go to Malta, departing on 22nd December for 7 nights. I had a few reservations, as I know this friend likes to do things her own way, and this was my only holiday this year. But I went with the plan to enjoy myself. We arrived at our hotel about 2pm in…
Read More
We wanted to give you some basic information on how the mind is wired to look for threats or rewards in our environment, and what this means for your healthy eating plans. Anxiety, worry and stress are emotional responses to a threat. This threat can be real (ie. A tiger about to pounce on us) or imagined/perceived (i.e. we feel we might starve, or might never be able to eat our favourite food again). These…
Read More
We thought it might be helpful to have a list of negative beliefs that we’ve collected along the way. It might stimulate you to think of any others that you need to add to your list! After a stressful day at the office I deserve a treat I will never be slim and must always be on a diet I can’t control my eating I’m useless I just give up Everyone sees me as having a…
Read More
We thought it might be helpful to have a list of triggers that we’ve collected along the way. It might stimulate you to think of any others that you need to add to your list! I eat when I’m bored, lonely I eat when I’m sad, stressed, lacking confidence, when something doesn’t go as planned If something or someone makes me very happy I eat to celebrate The smell of nice food makes me eat even…
Read More
We thought it might be helpful to have a list of habits that we’ve collected along the way. It might stimulate you to think of any others that you need to add to your list! I eat lunch at my desk, without concentrating on what I’m eating. After dinner, I need to eat something sweet I’ve always had a biscuit with a cup of tea I leave my favourite food of a meal to last,…
Read More
As part of a healthy lifestyle, it’s worth understanding what the optimum amount of carbohydrates, proteins and fats recommended on a daily basis. Carbohydrates Carbohydrates are your body’s main source of energy, and should make up the largest percentage of your daily calorie intake. Carbohydrates provide 4 calories per gram. For a balanced diet a man needs 2,500 and a woman needs 2,000 calories per day. (Values can vary depending on age, metabolism and…
Read More