HOW TO CHANGE YOUR EATING HABITS - Weight Loss Part 2

Diet! There's nothing like a word to put you off going on a diet... So instead of thinking of it as a diet, I looked at it as changing my eating habits in a bid to lose weight and become healthier. So how did I manage this? Baby steps is the key phrase here. In fact, this phrase is vital throughout my story. Why? Because you need to train yourself to lose weight successfully for it to have any lasting effects (I'll let you know how that goes later...). 

There's no point in diving straight in the deep end without learning to swim first. A mistake I have made many a time in the past. Gradual, small changes is the only way I have found success in weight loss. 

Otherwise I just crash and burn. 

For example, I have previously gone straight into a "cold turkey" type diet and, although I lost weight, I was starving! I never lasted more than a week or two and inevitably I put all the weight back on and then some. This is a familiar story to anyone who's tried and failed to lose weight I'm sure.

Gradual changes will ensure you don’t starve yourself and make the experience more enjoyable. You’re also more likely to stick at it. And if, like me, you have a bit of a problem with portion sizes, you will notice that with time it will take less to fill you up, so your stomach is shrinking! The two most important things I’ve learnt about eating are:

‘Don’t go hungry’, and ‘Stop eating as soon as you feel full’. 

Never force yourself to finish what’s on your plate! A difficult thing for a highlander given most of us are taught to clear our plates because it’s impolite to do otherwise. NEWS FLASH: It’s not! This is an old lesson from times when food was scarce and you had to eat everything to keep your strength up. We, luckily, no longer have to deal with food shortages, except for the odd pepper here and there… So if you’re full you’re full! You can always keep the leftovers for another day, so nothing is wasted.

So what’s the first step in changing your eating habits? Mine was dealing with snacking. As you might remember me saying in my first blog, I stopped snacking in the evenings because I was out walking instead. It was a couple of weeks before I realised I was no longer eating my beloved dark chocolate digestives in the evenings, but once I recognised this I took it a step further and made the decision not to eat after 8pm. Of course, this at times is unavoidable if you are, for example, going out for dinner. But as a general rule, I felt it was achievable, and I usually don’t have any problems sticking to this. 

Why is this important? I have no idea... People say it’s not good to eat after 8pm. But in Spain for example, dinner is served much later. So who knows!... Regardless of how right or wrong this is it has worked for me, and on the odd occasion where I think I'm getting peckish later on, I just drink more fluids - water (often with a splash of squash) in my case, but some sort of tea or coffee (no milk) is just as good. Probably best to avoid caffeine in the evenings though. Coffee in fact is apparently very good for weight loss. I can’t stand the stuff, so I wouldn’t know…

I've managed on the most part to cut out snacking between meals completely. Not an easy thing to do, but if you eat the right foods for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and don't have something like an overactive thyroid, it can be achievable! There may be other medical reasons why you might need to snack between meals, but given I'm no medical expert, I have no idea what they are. If this is the case with you then it's time to start planning. 

Seek out low calorie, high fibre snacks. 

Avoid things like crisps, chocolate, biscuits etc. There are plenty of choices out there, but popcorn (unsweetened!!!) seems to be a popular option. If you like your raw veg, carrot sticks, or other veg sticks such as celery (yuck!) are great with some humus as a very light, but very filling snack! Red pepper humus is my favourite! Here are some other 100 caloriesnack recipes to try out. A lot of these are only suitable if you have access to a fully stocked kitchen though. So probably not suitable for working hours.

If like me you have an office job, or a job where temptation is just a bit too close by, then planning is vital. Otherwise you just end up taking a trip to the vending machine that only sells crisps and chocolate. And of course, you can’t just eat half a bar or bag, you have to eat the whole thing! 

My trick is a jar of nuts (not peanuts) on my desk for the odd occasion where I do need a little something, and I mean little… I only ever allow myself a maximum of 4 nuts at a time. Doesn’t sound a lot I know, but consumed with plenty of water it seems to do the trick. Something low carb, high in fibre and non-perishable that can be stored in a drawer or bag for emergencies is what I would recommend. 

Have a look at the whole food section next time you go shopping and see what takes your fancy. As a rule, I would try not to go for anything over 130 calories, otherwise it kind of defeats the purpose.

Happy snacking!

*DISCLAIMER: Just a wee reminder that this is what has worked for me. There's no guarantee that it will work for everyone as we are all different. I’m not a professional!