If you’re looking to make some healthy changes to your life but are not sure where to start, take a look at my Weekly Plans for some inspiration.
The permanent changes suggested in the plans will help you become slimmer, healthier and fitter. The 4 week plan introduces healthy habits by changing small things in your life that you can stick to and which will become part of your healthy lifestyle. Goodbye bingo wings – Hello to skinny jeans.
A nutritionist talks about food, sport and lifestyle
Archives for category: Weekly Plan
This is the last installment of my weekly plan. This week we’ll be looking at further improvements to your diet and how to lose weight safely, effectively and forever!
- Eat 5 fruit or vegetable portions each day
- Cut out processed food
- Eat protein with every meal
- Eat no more than 50g of carbs with every meal
If you’ve been following my blog/twitter account you’ll know that I’ve been trying to eat 5 portions of fruit or vegetables every day as part of my new year’s resolutions. I’ve found it takes a bit of planning but is really easy to do. Try adding some fruit to your breakfast cereal, have a mid morning snack of fruit or veg, have some veg in your lunch, a mid afternoon snack of fruit or veg, some veg with your evening meal along with a glass of fruit juice and bingo – you’ve done it. I’ve found that I frequently have 6 portions now and plan to build on this even more over the coming weeks. The beauty of eating this much fruit and veg is that it frequently replaces less healthy foods, boosts your intake of vitamins, minerals, water and fibre and is a great aid to weight loss.
In this series we are looking at permanent changes to your diet and lifestyle rather than temporary quick fixes. This week we look at how to ramp up your weight loss.
- Start a diary
- Base your meals around vegetables rather than meat
- Do not eat after 8pm
- Aim for 30 mins activity every day
So, if you’ve been following our plan for weeks 1 and 2 you should start to be feeling some of the benefits of a more healthy lifestyle. You may have noticed your clothes feel a little looser or that you have more energy – it’s a really good idea at this stage to start recording your progress in a diary. Keeping a note of measurements, weight or how you feel is an excellent motivational tool. If you find yourself reaching for the chocolate, pick up the diary instead and read how far you’ve come.
In our second installment of ‘Getting back into shape’ we look at the next steps you can be thinking about on the path to a healthy body. No fads, no quick fixes, just good old fashioned common sense.
- Swap sweets and chocolate for fruit
- Swap to low fat versions of food
- Cut down on tea and coffee
- Increase the number of steps you take by a third
Swapping sweets and chocolate for fruit will satisfy your sweet tooth but look after your waist line too. Fruit is naturally sweet and full of vitamins and minerals helping to keep your immune system in tip top condition. The fibre in the fruit will keep you full for longer than the sweets or chocolate.
Swapping to low fat versions of foods will enable you to eat the same quantities of foods for less calories. You shouldn’t totally cut out fat though as it is vital for good health. Saturated fats are bad for you but unsaturated fats are good for you.
Caffeine temporarily raises blood sugar levels and as we learnt in last week’s blog this is not good for your appetite or weight. Swap to water or fruit/herbal teas instead.
Increasing the number of steps you take each day will burn more calories. Walking relieves stress, lowers blood pressure and gets you outside – all excellent for good health. Aim to reach 10,000 steps each day – keep the car keys in your pocket and invest in a pair of walking boots!
OK – so you’ve over indulged during the holidays and are now feeling slightly pudgy and more than a little guilty. Before you vow to go on a diet, go to the gym everyday and eat 10 portions of fruit and veg daily, sit down and have a think about what you can really achieve. Is it better to change 5 small things for life than everything you can think of for 3 days and then give up with hunger and exhaustion?
This is the first week of a 4 week plan that will help you to change small things for life. There are no quick fixes here – just sound advice. So grab a pen and paper or print out this page and stick it on your fridge but make sure it’s handy…
- Swap refined products for wholemeal.
- Eat 4 – 6 small meals a day to keep yourself satisfied and avoid cravings and hunger.
- Cut out sugary/fizzy/alchoholic drinks and replace with water.
- Buy a pedometer and record your daily steps for the week.
- Increase your daily activity levels by taking the stairs instead of the lift, walking to the shop instead of driving and walking to colleagues desks instead of emailing. Be creative and make reasons for getting up from the sofa!
