Is your new years resolution to lose weight? If so Read on!

It’s that time of year again, when we look back at the past year and re-evaluate our life - what we have done or not done, we resolve to make changes and set goals for the coming year. Today I’m going to be talking to those of you who have weight loss related goals. So many people start of the new year full of excitement and anticipation of how fast they can get rid of the unwanted weight they have been carrying or maybe have recently gained. January is the time when gym memberships go up, health DVD can seem to fly off shop shelves and new diets seem to pop out of everywhere. How many times have you heard people say “Have you tried this 9 day detox? Sugar detox? Meal replacements? No carbs? No fat”? And so on and on I’m sure that when people set their resolution to lose weight, its not really truly about weight, what they really want is to be happy in their body, to feel full of energy to be able to eat tasty food and not food that seem like it’s punishment. I’m here today to tell you that is entirely possible.

You don’t need to live on juices for a month or stop eating carbohydrates or even cut fat from your diet, what you need is healthy sustainable advice based on REAL FOOD!! Yes you can have a bacon sandwich in the morning and lose weight you can even have a slice of pizza and a chocolate now and again too, food is a pleasure and should be enjoyed. Healthy food that is nourishing for the body will get you to your goal and the most importantly help remain that faster than any ‘weight loss diet’ will, be it meal replacements, juicing, patches, pill, potions. I only wish I could teach you all just simply HOW to eat for good health and pleasure, as it seems we have all lost the knowledge. We need to stop dieting and learn how to eat to be healthy and very often the side effect of being healthy is a healthy weight. By this I mean if you are over weight you will naturally find that the excess pounds fall off and if you are under weight, when you adopt a nourishing healthy diet your body will steadily increase to a healthy level. Now please do not interpret what I am saying as all those over or under weight aren’t healthy that is not my opinion at all. All I am saying is health should be the focus of any change in diet not weight. I could go on about why we don’t need special detox diets. I think sometimes we get so caught up in what we weigh we forget that weight really isn’t the most important factor at all.

So if your new years resolution is to lose weight, why not rephrase it to gain health instead? Weight loss isn’t a true reflection of all that much to be honest, as you can weigh less from muscle wastage, dehydration, carb depletion and fasting/starving. If your goal is to lose unwanted body fat that weight shouldn’t be your focal point. So many clients I see come to me and fixated on weight when how you feel how you look and your health is the true indication of health. I have a client who lost two dress sizes before Christmas she was seeing me once a week and a personal trainer three times a week, after the second week I had to stop weighing her because she was becoming very disheartened. Her weight you see didn’t change in the whole six weeks I saw her, and had she been focusing only on her weight she may have become disheartened and stopped. Yet at the end of the six weeks she was a comfortable size 12 not an uncomfortable size 16 and her body fat was now a healthy level. Instead of focusing on weight we focused on cravings, energy levels, skin and mood. So if fat loss is you aim, don’t fall pray to the marketing gimmicks - the fast quick fix ‘diets’ that don’t put your health first. Focus on eating REAL FOOD!! DON’T GIVE UP FAT – just eat them from nutritious sources, and yes that even includes a little bit of butter! Don’t shun carbohydrates – just pick slow releasing natural unrefined sources such as:- oats, sweet potatoes, basmarti rice, vegetables in abundance and low glycemic load fruit. Eat adequate protein with every meal. Go organic if money allows and buy grass fed beef as opposed to grain fed. If you would like a months diet plan to get you of to a good start for 7 days only you can have a one to one consultation and a one months diet plan for the reduce price of £50. Normal price is £75 for a consultation and a one week plan! Call 07780007361 to book your appointment or email Kirsten@thefoodremedy.co.uk

Alcohol and pregnacy

Is it safe to have a few alcoholic drinks when im pregnant?The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) advises that women who are pregnant should avoid alcohol especially in the first three months because of the increased risk of miscarriage. The Department of Health recommends that you avoid drinking alcohol altogether if you’re pregnant. This is because if you drink when you are pregnant the alcohol passes to your unborn baby through your placenta. In the developing immature body of your baby alcohol is broken down much slower than in an adult's body. As a result, the alcohol level of the baby's blood can be higher and remain elevated longer than the level in the mother's blood. This could cause the baby to suffer lifelong damage. No level of alcohol use during pregnancy has been proven safe. So it would be wise to avoid alcohol whilst pregnant to ensure you and your unborn baby is in the best possible health.

Can I cook with Extra Virgin Olive Oil?

Is it true you shouldn’t cook with extra virgin olive oil?Unrefined, cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil has one of the lowest smoke point of all forms of olive oil. This is because extra virgin oil is the least refined, most nutrient dense and contains the largest concentration of fragile nutritive components. When heated to a high temperature the oil burns, turns rancid, and in turn lets out free radicals which are carcinogens. Extra Virgin Olive Oil does not have as high a smoke point as butter or coconut oil. For these reasons, I don't recommend cooking with extra virgin. Keep extra virgin olive oil for salad dressings, drizzling on cooked vegetables or adding to smoothies. To cook with use butter, coconut oil or toasted sesame oil instead.

I'm desperate to lose weigh please help!

I’m desperate to lose weight for the summer but can’t seem to stick to any diet for long. Since January I’ve tried herbal life, lighter life and diet chef, but can’t seem to stick to them for longer than a few weeks at the most, what is the best diet advice? We seem to be bombarded with the latest diet, the fastest way to lose weight or how some celebrity lost a stone or two. In reality we seem to have lost touch with the joy of eating, we have forgotten what normal healthy food is and have bought into the concept that we need man made food products or supplements. There is no quick fix, no magic pill for getting the body of your dreams, but that doesn’t mean that you have to starve to get there nor should it be a hard drawn out process either. Your body was made to be healthy. As a society we seem to have been brainwashed by the media and clever marketing from food companies and we no longer seem to know what is good for us anymore. Margarine sales are a prime example of this as is the rise of fat free yet high sugar products, all made to make money and clever marketing makes us believe we are doing the best for our health, however the truth is we are now fatter and unhealthier than ever before. The biggest myth is that you need to eat less to lose fat. Many of the clients I see are surprised how much they can eat and still lose excess fat. Eat fewer calories and you will lose weight, this is a distorted. A calorie is a calorie right?! The theory goes like this; in order to lose weight we must eat less, this creates a calorie defect which creates weight loss. Well the truth isn’t quite as simple as this not all food is digested in the same way, so whilst a calorie is a calorie how that calorie is absorbed once in the body is different dependent on what type of food the calorie came from. The quality of where the calories come from is really important too. One study conducted by Pawlak D et al 2004, fed two groups of rats diets with identical nutrients, except for the type of carbohydrates, one group had high-GL the other had Low-GI. The animals were fed in a controlled way to maintain the same mean bodyweight for 18 weeks. At the end of the 18 weeks the rats on the lower GL diets had lower rates of body fat and higher amounts of lean muscle mass compared with the rats on the high GL diet. Further research has also shown similar results in mice. Mice on the high-GI diet had almost twice the body fat of those on the low-GI diet after 9 weeks. This shows that the type of food you eat is very important. You don’t need to remove carbohydrates completely nor do you need to eat a low calorie, fat free diet. What you need to learn is how to eat in a way that helps provide your body with enough energy and nutrients but also helps you lose excess fat. It may sound very complicated but it’s easier that it sounds. The most beneficial thing anyone can do to gain health and lose excess weight, is too shift the focus from weight loss altogether and focus on eating real food, then the weight will take care of itself. By real food I mean food that hasn't been tampered with, vegetables, fruit, fish, meat, nuts, rice, butter ETC. Yes even butter has benefits when eaten as part of a healthy balanced diet.

A days eating could look something like this:-

Breakfast - Poached eggs on whole grain toast spread with a little butter Snack - Apple and 10 almonds Lunch -Chicken pesto and salad wrap Live natural yogurt with fresh or frozen berries Dinner - Salmon with new baby potatoes served with green vegetables If you would like more advice or a tailor made diet, please contact me on Kirsten@thefoodremedy.co.uk or on 07780007361 Also vist www.thefoodremedy.co.uk for recipes and healthy food ideas

Different coloured vegetables and fruits

How important is it to eat different coloured vegetables and fruits?  

There is a good reason why it is recommended to eat a rainbow of different coloured fruits and vegetables each day. Each different coloured vegetable provides a range of phytochemical (plant nutrients)

Red fruits and vegetables are coloured by natural plant pigments called "lycopene" or "anthocyanins." Lycopene in tomatoes, watermelon and pink grapefruit, for example, may help reduce risk of several types of cancer, especially prostate cancer. Lycopene is found in tomatoes.

Anthocyanins in strawberries, raspberries, red grapes and other fruits and vegetables act as powerful antioxidants that protect cells from damage. Antioxidants are linked with keeping our hearts healthy, too.

Orange/yellow fruits and vegetables are usually coloured by natural plant pigments called "carotenoids." Beta-carotene in sweet potatoes, pumpkins and carrots is converted to vitamin A, which helps maintain healthy mucous membranes and healthy eyes.

Green fruits and vegetables are coloured by natural plant pigment called "chlorophyll." Spinach, green peppers, peas, cucumber and celery also contain lutein. Lutein may help protect the eyes from developing age-related macular degeneration and cataracts

Blue/purple fruits and vegetables are coloured by natural plant pigments called "anthocyanins." Anthocyanins in blueberries, grapes and raisins act as powerful antioxidants that protect cells from damage. They may help reduce risk of cancer, stroke and heart disease.

White fruits and vegetables are coloured by pigments called "anthoxanthins." They may contain health-promoting chemicals such as allicin, which may help lower cholesterol and blood pressure and may help reduce risk of stomach cancer and heart disease.

People who eat more generous amounts of fruits and vegetables as part of a healthy diet are likely to have reduced risk of chronic diseases, including strokes, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, and perhaps heart disease and high blood pressure.