Weight Loss Guru

Hi everyone

If you are interested in the subject of fat then please have watch this film with Dr Mary Enig.

Hi everyone, here's a great little piece from a friend of mine. Her name is Susan Cass, she's a Personal Fitness Trainer and she really knows what she's talking about... Enjoy :)

I can't have that, I really can't have that - I want it, I want it - oh okay I'll just do an extra hour in the gym tomorrow, donuts aren't that bad after all anyway are they? Especially if I scrape a bit of the sugar off and it after all it has a hole in the middle.....

So tell me, Dust? high in fat, low in fat? Well probably both depending on your mind set that day. Had a great day? - yes? so its okay to reward yourself with "CAKE". Had a bad day? Yes? so it's okay to cheer yourself up with "CAKE"

Do you remember being at school and doing exceptionally well in your spelling test? Well it was more than likely your folks were waiting at the school gates with a huge smile and armed with that finger of fudge for being great. Didn't make the soccer team first squad? Your greeting at the school gates is now open arms, a sympathetic expression and that finger of fudge. So you can see a distinct pattern emerging. From a young age food was generally interpreted as both reward and condolence.

As we have gotten older we've understood that more calories we consume than we actually need leads to carrying additional body weight - so we start trying to balance out our calorie intake/expenditure formula by overtraining or going on bouts of sudden and severe training regimes which overtime can damage our internal body systems. For example in order to have that Krispy Kreme, you HAVE to do an extra hour on the stepper or run an extra 6 miles, or you'll feel guilty for the rest of the day.

So food can quite often resemble an emotional crutch to get us through any situation and battling your conscience on a daily basis could feel like the energy equivalent of fighting 10 rounds head to head with Mohamed Ali (if only the calorie burn were the same!)

The question is, Do I REALLY want to eat that, do I REALLY need it? If the answer is yes - then you will have it. If the answer is no, think about doing something that makes you feel good? Perhaps a long walk in the countryside alongside a babbling brook breathing in the fresh air? A competitive game of 10 pin bowling with friends at the local alley? a game of five aside with your friends after work? shopping with girlfriends and the purchase of those killer Jimmy Choo's, going to see the newest film release at the cinema? - just reading that probably made you smile.

Somewhere deep within us, we have some unique behaviour triggers, the things in life that truly inspire us and make us feel great and want to push on. Write down those thoughts, aspirations and goals that inspire you as well as your measurable goals and how you are going to achieve them. Refer back to them as often as you can as a reminder that will keep you on course. It will act as a motivational tool to make sure you stay focused and on track. Over time your goals and dreams may change, so you may need to try a variety of approaches and change your diet to find that winning formula for you. There is no right or wrong - if it works for you, it works!

If you always do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got - so chuck away those emotional food crutches, think about the consequences of your actions everyday and take a positive stance to change by taking responsibility to break the bad habits. Its truly liberating and you'll step out of bed every morning healthier, happier and more in control of you. No more food rewards and no more Majorie Dawes!

Article by
Susan Cass
Personal Fitness Trainer

Bit of a treat today, we have a Guest Post from Ali Hale of theofficediet.com - Healthy Living for Busy People. Ali is really inspiring, here she's broken a 'day in the office' down to certain 'trigger-times', I hope you enjoy reading this... If you do, please leave a comment for Ali at the bottom. Thanks

For many of us who work in desk-based jobs, it can be all too easy for our diet to be derailed before we’ve even noticed. Whether it’s those delicious cupcakes that the “birthday boy” in your office brought in, or the buffet lunch laid on for a meeting, working life can undermine even the best of intentions.

There are various times in the day, though, where things seem most prone to going wrong … and if you plan ahead, you can easily cope with them.

8.00am - Skipping breakfast
Have you ever hit “snooze” on the alarm, snuggled back down under the duvet, and drifted back into blissful sleep … only to jolt awake at 8am, needing to be washed, dressed and en route to work by 8.10? Usually, the easiest thing to cut from your morning routine is breakfast.

Skipping eating in the morning, though, means your metabolism gets off to a sluggish start – and being hungry will make that doughnut shop on the way to work much more tempting…

11.00am – Mid-morning snack from the vending machine
By the time you’ve been at work for a couple of hours, stress may have kicked in. That snippy email from a customer, or your boss suddenly dumping a huge project in your in-tray, can make you seek out the nearest vending machine for some chocolate-coated comfort

If you’re feeling the pressure mounting up, take a short break from your desk. Walk to the water cooler, not the nearest snack-source, and get yourself a cold glass of water. Or head over to talk to a colleague who’ll be able to help you gain some perspective.

1.00pm – Buffet lunch at a meeting
Sometimes, you manage the perfect morning: a healthy yet satisfying breakfast, a virtuous apple for a snack … then a buffet table faces you at lunchtime. If you’re anything like me, you’ll find that the siren call of “FREE FOOD, FREE FOOD” overrides more sensible thoughts like “Do I really want to eat that, though?” and “What would be a reasonably low-fat option?”

Through somewhat gluttonous experience, I’ve found that the best ways to deal with free buffet lunches are:

• Fill half of your plate with crudités or fruit.
• Just go for the things you really like the look of. There’s no rule saying you have to try one of everything.
• Stop after a single plateful – no “I’ll just have another of these little things…”
• Eat slowly: take your time over the meal and chat to people.

4.00pm – The afternoon energy slump
Few of us are at our most productive during the last hour of the working day. It can be very tempting to have a yawn, a stretch, a quick check of Facebook … and a sugary snack for an energy boost. If you’re genuinely hungry, try a cereal bar, a couple of pieces of fruit, or a small sandwich. If you’re just tired, a mug of tea or coffee will perk you up – if you want to cut your caffeine intake, there are lots of tasty herbal teas around.

7.00pm – Too tired to cook
When the last thing you want to do after work is cook an elaborate meal, it can be tempting to phone for a pizza or Chinese. Most of us have busy lives and don’t want to spend hours in the evenings preparing food. I’ve found that it helps immensely to plan ahead: agree with your flatmates or partner who’ll cook on which weeknights, working around your schedules. Decide what you’ll make in advance, and ensure you pop to the shops at the weekend or on the way home to work for any ingredients needed.

If you have plenty of time at the weekend, cook double portions and freeze half -- you’ll have a quick weekday supper that just needs heating up, at much lower cost and higher quality than pre-packaged ready meals.

Hi, as people keep asking me where to find this, I thought i'd post it again, enjoy! Pete.

In this clip Edward P Nehoc gives you some great tips on gaining weight and avoiding healthy habits as the current wave of healthy eating and weight-loss has the Ministry worried for the nation's health.

Hi there all.

Some members on my weight loss programme publish some of their journal entries; I read this one and wanted to share it with you all:

“I was thinking I should prepare a cake to eat, so I entered in the kitchen. But there was a beautiful apple in my way, already cleaned. As I ate it, my wishing of a delicious cake simply disappeared! That's the way it works. The apple was delicious!” - SIlvia, Brazil

This is a great example of someone breaking a habit and doing something different. I challenge all of you to get into the habit of breaking the habits that hold you back. How about YOU get into the habit of eating more fruit. Check out the blog entries on apples and bananas.

Take care,
Pete