If you've been following me for a while you'll know I don't agree with diets. They're short term quick fixes that ruin your ability to listen to your body, ruin your metabolism and ruin your relationship with food.
Instead we believe in coaching our clients to build on the good habits they already have to ensure they get sustainable, long lasting results.
Here are the first 5 habits I encourage all of my clients to practise, no matter what stage they are at.
1) Slow it down.
A lot of clients I work with have parents that grew up in the war. This means throughout their childhood they were taught to finish what was on their plate, because that was it- they didn't know when or what their next meal would be.
This has lead to the common parenthood teaching of 'finishing everything on your plate' and now automatically, no matter what size portion is put in front of us, we're determined to finish it.
Instead, I recommend you slow down and really take notice of how you're feeling throughout the meal. If you can't tell if you're getting full, have a slight pause half way through.
Remember, you can always go back to it later or have it for lunch the next day.
2) Stop when you're 80% full.
That nicely brings me onto my next point; to stop eating when you're full.
As a nation, we over eat. We serve bigger portions than we need and we tend to take in more energy than we use per day. By learning to stop eating when you're full you'll decrease the amount of energy you take in per day which will push you another step closer to reaching your goal.
At first, this can seem hard, but the more you do it the more empowering you will realise it is.
Remember, some days you will be hungrier than others so don't judge yourself on how full you are one day to the next, just listen!
3) Be aware!
Are you always hungry at 4pm?
Do you find yourself snacking uncontrollably after a glass of wine?
Maybe every now on then you go on a food binge and clear out your sweet cupboard until you feel sick with guilt?
The first stage of improving your habits is being completely aware of when and why you do them in the first place.
If you are always hungry at 4pm, is there a macronutrient you're missing in your lunch or does your body just want to be fuelled more regularly?
If the later a good tip is to eat half of your lunch at lunch time and the other half as a pm snack or keep some nuts & seeds on your desk.
If you have started snacking uncontrollably after a few glasses of wine, is it because you started drinking on an empty stomach, or are you trying to push down or disconnect from a feeling?
And if you find yourself going on a food binge, ask yourself how you're feeling before hand. The answer might not come to you until you're a half way through a share-bag of Maltesers, but that's okay, as long as you're aware what emotion you're trying to cover or deal with food.
4) Eat more veggies!
You didn't hear it here first. Yet still the nation isn't listening because study's show we're not eating enough vegetables.
Now, I'm not telling you to fill your plate with basic boiled veggies.. not even I would eat that!
But 50% of your plate should be filled with a colourful range of fruits or vegetables.
My tip is to challenge yourself and make vegetables the base of your meal by getting creative and searching for recipes that will make your veggies taste amazing.
Tip: I always ensure I have a bag of spinach or kale in the fridge as I know if I'm in a rush I can add them into almost any meal.
Also, have snacks like carrots and peppers in the fridge so you can chop them up and enjoy them on the move, at your desk, or at home.
5) Listen to what your body is telling you.
It's all well and good eating what you think you should be, but the truth is your body knows best.
If you're craving carbohydrates, the truth is your body probably trying to tell you something.
Now i'm not telling you to dive into a bag of crisps, instead, think back to what you've eaten that day already. Have you missed out on a certain macronutrient? Have you had a tough session in the gym, but not fuelled up correctly after? Did you get a good enough sleep the night before? Are you in your last 8 days of ovulation and so your body requires more energy and therefore more carbohydrates?
These are all questions you should be asking yourself, as good nutrition isn't just as simple as just eating whole, minimally processed foods.
We are humans with habits, cravings and emotions and we must consider that when we're striving to be the happiest, healthiest and most confident.
Are you ready to reach your goal and become the happiest, healthiest and most confident version of yourself?
We have 2 brand new programs coming out before the end of May that are designed for you to fast track your results and reach your goal.
We only have a limited amount of spots available so be sure to guarantee your spot by signing up to the pre-sale.
You'll also be the first to find out more about the program, you'll have access to the program 24hours before the public and you'll receive a huge 33% discount on the day of the launch.
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