Monday 20 June 2011

The Make Do Diet - 3 Wise Points

Smallest point - 100 situps a day = 1inch waist loss in 10 days. Fact.
Medium point - did you know, that if you eat protein or carbs, your body has to work quite hard to digest it and store it in your body. But fat goes in complete, and gets stored immediately as FAT...so the saying a minute on your lips and a lifetime on your hips has some merit....
Big point - this is very important to learn, why you must stop and think.
The release of a “new diet” where some celebrity shows impressive weight loss in a matter of weeks is somewhat seductive. Yes, weight creeps on slowly – or even a magnificent 3-4lbs after a weekend of overindulgence – and you know, there are ways to quickly lose “weight” on the scales, but no crash diet can sustain its initial weight loss – mainly because the weight is water and a little bit of carbs and not a lot of fat.
This week, we are going to play “Stop and Think” – much like an amber light on the traffic lights.

1. Fat – breaking down protein and carbs takes energy and increases your metabolic rate. Eat fat and it goes straight to fat on your body.....so, please don’t cut it out altogether as it is a vital component for transportation of hormones, makes your hair shiny and your skin soft – but reduce your saturate fat (ones that are solid at room temp) to 10% of your diet. Butter only one side of your sandwich, spray your oil onto you pan, eat less cheese, cut the fat off your meat etc
2. Carbs – buy the best you can. Organic if possible (grow your own?) – bright colours, red, yellow and dark green. Add as much as you can to your meals – frozen chopped spinach and peas can be added to many dishes, as well as grated carrots or courgette. Stay away from processed foods, eat brown bread, or spelt if you get IBS (the fast fermentation of cheap white bread can often cause bloating). Rice and potatoes in hand size portions only.
3. Protein - increases metabolic rate and reduces hunger pangs, so try to include a little at each meal – yoghurt, beans and nuts are all good sources. If you want meat, then about the size of your palm is a good guide for mealtimes.
4. Pause – it has been noted that there is a natural “pause” during our eating phase. We eat continuously when we are hungry, but once we have reached a point of being “satisfied” then we tend to “Pause” – put our knife and fork down, have a drink etc. IF you want to lose weight, LOOK for this sign and STOP eating at that point – put your knife and fork together and push your plate away – portion control is often where even the healthiest of eaters gets let down.

Summary
1. Remeasure – you will be delighted if you have managed to do the sit-ups as I bet you have lost inches even if the scales have stayed the same.
2. Keep up the sit-ups – and try to do a few more if you can – they will help you get your waist back.
3. PAUSE – stop and think at every meal.
4. Keep the 30 mins exercise and add a 10 second BLAST every couple of minutes to get out of breath – run faster, jump, anything to make you breathless - it will help you burn more calories.
5. Eat the best possible food – make your plate look as colourful as possible.

10 comments:

  1. I am so proud of you!! I've started walking again and feel better for it x

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  2. I wish I had bigger hands, haha! My portion sizes should be tiny according to that rule but I just can't cope with that little food.

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  3. The 'pause' advice is spot on; Paul McKenna says to go beyond this and put your knife and fork down after every mouthful - this encourages you to chew properly, so you realise when you're feeling full. It works for me - I reckon I eat 30% less than I did!

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  4. I don't have that natural pause thing. I've lost it. If indeed I ever had it. This is why I look the same width sideon as I do face on.

    Went for a walk today - only 20 minutes, but a start!

    keep going!!!!

    Ali x

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  5. I do agree with that "pause" thing. As much as I hate waste I have learnt to stop eating once I've put the knife and fork down. xxx

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  6. THANK YOU FOR THIS!
    I got out of doing the sit ups and simple stretches now will be back to it.
    I'm not so worried about the food part as I know - hand on heart - my eating is ok but I have to substitute as nuch fruit and veg for the too frequent cakes and white bread products.

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  7. Munch munch munch, anyone fancy a nik nak? Monster munch, hula hoops? Do Kettle chips count as good carbs?

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  8. I have to get going with my situps!

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  9. i do agree with what you say and think that this approach is fine for someone who only has a few pounds to lose but as I have been saying to you recently about the Dukan diet, the most important thing with weight loss is to stick to the maintenance programmes if you dont want to put the weight back on, because everybody does, they never learn that you have to change your eating habits forever. Obviously your approach is the sensible one, but for me this just doesn't work but as I say for someone who just wants to eat healthily and maybe lose a few pounds in the process with no immediate need to lose a large amount of weight this is fine. Age and impending menopause do make weight loss difficult for some, I only hope that this doesn't affect many of our readers as it has done me, because it does come as a bit of a shock, especially when you love fashion!

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  10. I love these tips. I've always only buttered one side of my bread but I eat far too much cheese.

    The Actor has been telling me to do sit ups for the last five years. I just don't remember, it never enters my head. You are right and I will write a note on the door or something! xx

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