Are you a secret eater but don't even know it?

Eating healthily in the modern era is not easy; it’s not hard either, but it does take planning, commitment and sometimes an iron will.

I have encountered many individuals who are trying to change their diets, eat healthier and lose body-fat over my many years as a fitness professional (many of these finding it a struggle) and I have absolutely no doubt that people do not think they are lying to me about what they eat.  However, I do believe that for many they do not realise what passes their lips each day and do not realise how many extra calories of sugar in particular they are consuming.

Those who know me, or who have read my blogs before will know that I am anti calorie counting, but I do think that it’s important to understand the macro-nutrient breakdown of your diet if you are trying to lose body fat or gain muscle mass.  The macro-nutrients are protein, carbohydrate and fat.  A healthy balanced diet will contain all macro-nutrients, the exact quantities of each will depend on your individual situation. The macro nutrients are;

Protein: Only consume clean protein sources. Grass fed, organic or free range meat and poultry where possible and fresh water, wild fish.  Good vegetable sources can include nuts, seeds, pulses (careful of carb content) and vegan protein powders such as Sun Warrior.

Aim for 0.6g per lb/body weight per day (more if you are training hard or recovering from illness).

Carbohydrate (CHO): Coming from mainly low glycaemic vegetable sources.  Avoid grains, especially anything containing wheat. 

As a guide, if you want to lose body fat, consume no more than 100g of CHO per day.  If you want to maintain bodyweight, 100-150g of CHO is adequate (see my "How much CHO should I be eating" blog for full details).

Fat: A good balance of saturated sources (animal fats & coconut oil), mono-unsaturated fats (nuts, olive oil, avocados) and polyunsaturated fats (seeds, oily fish) will give the body a great source of energy and help keep your blood sugar balanced and your insulin levels under control.  A daily Omega 3 fatty acid supplement is recommended too.

Note: AVOID ALL TRANS-FAT SOURCES (highly processed man made fats found in cakes, pies and pastries).

Ok, this is all very well, but what do I mean when I say, “Are you a secret eater, but don’t even know it?”  I am referring to the fact that despite many of us getting the basics right in terms of eating 3 meals a day that are home cooked, full of vegetables, drinking lots of water etc. We are not making any progress in our body fat and body weight goals.

Why?

I am sure this is down to not realising how much extra food and drink passes our lips that we don’t count as eaten, or in some cases even realise we’ve consumed.

The culprits:

Alcohol:  Ok, we all know when we’ve had a drink, but if you have a heavy night (and we all do), do you really know how much you’ve had to drink?  Let’s do some conservative maths.  If you consumed 1 bottle of red wine (approximately 400kcal), 2 G&T’s (approx 240kcal) & a couple of shots of zambuca (approx 200kcal) on a night out, you have added over 800kcal of (mainly) sugar to your diet.  This doesn’t even count the kebab on the way home and the way you crave junk food the next day and you can see that someone with a particularly social job or a lifestyle that revolves around weekend drinking will have problems controlling their weight, or losing body fat even if they are exercising a lot.  The way round this is simple; moderation!  I know that’s not always possible, but if you want results then knock the binge drinking on the head.

Petrol station queues:  We’ve all been there, standing waiting to be served, your tummy is rumbling and all around you are special offers for chocolate bars, crisps and cakes.  It’s so easy to just throw a little treat onto the counter, eat it in the car and throw away the wrapper before anyone sees, it’s like it never happened.  Again, let’s do the maths.  If you fill up twice a week at the petrol station and each time buy yourself a chocolate bar and a bag of crisps (approx 400Kcal X 2 = 800 Kcal), again it’s easy to see how the calories in sugar and bad fats can rack up without noticing.  I have found the way to get around this is to pay in cash and make sure you fill your tank up completely so you don’t need to go as often.

Fizzy drinks:  This one, especially “sports drinks” really grinds my gears! They just are not necessary.  I actually chuckle to myself when I see someone guzzling a Lucozade whilst having a gentle cycle on a recumbent bike.  I mean they are actually producing a net calorie gain whilst at the gym, shocking!!  So, first of all, unless you are participating in the sporting arena, or taking part in an endurance event of over 90 minutes you have no need for an isotonic sports drink at the gym.  Non sports fizzy drinks are also full of excess sugar calories.  

If you have 1 can of cola per day (140 kcal) it will add an extra 980Kcal per week.  Not only that, each can contains around 40g CHO, which is almost half your daily allowance if you’re trying to burn body-fat.

My advice is to stay away from fizzy drinks, including “diet” versions (for other reasons) and just drink plain water & herbal teas the majority of the time for good health.  This misunderstanding of the sugars in drinks also applies to fruit juices, fruit smoothies, fancy pants coffees like lattes and such like.  Fruit juices and smoothies (if homemade) can be a fantastic source of vitamins and minerals, but be careful not to overload them with high glycaemic fruits. It’s all about the combinations!

Other notable culprits include; 

Grazers – Eating a few chips from your children’s plates or finishing their leftovers everyday does count!

70:30 – Eating well Mon-Fri but blowing out at weekends isn’t going to get you results.

Office cakes – it’s not necessary to have to take a slice of cake just because it’s Jenny’s cat’s birthday.  

Remember, those people who pressure you into eating are just doing it because it makes them question their own life choices.  

You eat too much! – You can eat too much good food.  Focus on portion sizes and food ratios on your plate.  A good fist size piece of protein, a load of leafy vegetables and some healthy fats in the form of some avocado, seeds or some olive oil to dress is how a plate should look. Try using smaller plates too.

I’m not going to pretend I am perfect, but I am fully aware of what I’m eating and what my health goals are and adjust my diet accordingly.  I hope this article has shown you that without even realising it you can add almost 2000kcal or 500g of CHO per week in mainly sugar to your diet.  I’m afraid to say, you can hit the gym 4-5 times per week, but it’s going to make no difference if you are stocking up on that amount of sugar.  

My advice is to really take the time to plan your meals, keep an accurate food diary and most importantly understand what is passing your lips!

Stay healthy!

Changing behaviour for long term health

One of the most frustrating aspects of being a Fitness professional is seeing such inconsistency in peoples training regimes and diet.  I am forever hearing next week is the week I’m going to sort my food out; on Monday I am going to stop drinking so much; after my holiday I am going to take my training more seriously etc. 

This table from Stanford University’s psychology research department makes interesting reading and can shed some light on why people seemingly find it so difficult to add an exercise or healthy diet regime to their life,  give up a bad habit or break away from self destructive behaviours that affect their overall health.

The table highlights the fact that not enough focus is on recognising or understanding how much our behaviours, therefore our lives are controlled by habits.

	Stanford University’s Top 10 mistakes in behaviour change
1	Relying on will power for long term change.
2	Attempting big leaps instead of baby steps.
3	Ignoring how environment shapes behaviour.
4	Trying to stop old behaviours rather than create new ones.
5	Blaming failure on lack of motivation.
6	Underestimating the power of triggers.
7	Believing that information leads to action.
8	Focusing on abstract goals more than concentrating on concrete behaviours.
9	Seeking at the outset to change the behaviour forever.
10	Believing that behaviour change is always difficult.

It is human nature to think that we are all in control of our lives and all of decisions and behaviours are completely rational and all of the choices we make are conscious.  The truth is that they are not; our brains may only make up 2% of our body-weight but they consume 20% of our energy resources. In fact, it has been shown that willpower behaves like a muscle in the sense that it burns more energy and can get tired when overused.  Which suggests that it’s natural for the brain to want to conserve energy; running on auto-pilot is a good example of this. 

Our lives are run by habits, so when it comes to changing your diet, or committing to an exercise regime or giving up drinking or smoking it is no wonder so many fail at the first hurdle as they are battling against environmental triggers that they don’t know exist.  The good news is there is something you can do to help; learn new behaviours and create new brain connections!

Professor Ben Fletcher, Head of Psychology at the University of Hertfordshire has spent his career researching this field and has overwhelming evidence that shows that when people try new things their mind is opened to change.  This in turn has a positive effect on breaking habits, losing weight and making sustainable long term changes. 

Remember, Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome. So, try making some positive changes in your life and do something different today!

Weight Loss - it's all in the mind!

To get a body like a film star all you have to do is cut out wheat, dairy, sugar and carbohydrates; only eat for five days out of seven; never eat after 7pm; and on top of that make sure you are eating enough protein to create a new species on the endangered list and guzzle so many supplements it will keep Holland & Barrett in business for decades. 

Yes, according to the glossy magazines this is what it takes to lose weight and get the body you dream of. Sounds easy, right?!

Sarcasm aside, my many years of experience in the field tell me that people who exercise consistently and effectively and have a diet full of unprocessed highly nutritious food will make significant changes in their physical appearance and maintain a healthy weight.  However, many people constantly fall at the first hurdle and find it almost impossible to stick to a healthy living regime. 

Why? I believe it is due to lack of understanding of the many psychological factors that are associated with dieting behaviour.

Habits

Human beings are habitual by nature and from the moment we are born food becomes an essential part of our lives. It’s no surprise to find out that over the years we develop habits and create associations with food that are in some cases controlled by our environment and are not under our conscious control.  So what can be done about this?  Research has shown that breaking habits can be achieved by making small changes in our daily routine and getting out of our comfort zones.  

Completing simple tasks such as watching different television programmes, eating new foods, taking up new hobbies and making new friends can not only enrich your life but help you lose up to 2lb a week before you even start dieting.  

My advice is to begin making small positive changes to your life before starting a diet and fitness regime, as this will not only open your mind to change but give a whole new perspective to life itself.

Behaviour Change

Timing when to start a weight management programme is essential for success.  By this I don’t mean that you should only start when you have no parties to go to; but knowing when you are ready and capable of change before making adjustments to your lifestyle is important.

I believe there are 5 stages to consider. Which one are you at?

1)  Pre-contemplation.  At this stage people are in denial over their need for change.  They embark on diet plans under duress from others and will rarely achieve success.

2)  Contemplation. This is the stage when a person acknowledges that they have a problem and like to talk about it, read about it and think about it.  In fact, they like to do anything except act on it. 

3)  Preparation.  Preparing for action!  This can involve seeking out a personal trainer or gym membership, deciding what foods you are going to cut out of your life and planning your meals.  A key part of this stage is to go public with your intentions to help push you into action.

4)  Action.  This stage is busy and time consuming.  A routine of new foods and exercise dominate your thoughts whilst trying to combat cravings and negative influences.  This is why preparation is vital!

5)  Maintenance. Once you begin to make changes and gain results, your support from peers dwindles.  This makes it essential that you understand that CHANGE NEVER ENDS WITH ACTION. An extensive period of maintenance is needed to engrain the new regime into your life whilst it becomes a new habit, this can last anything from 6 months to a lifetime!

TOP TIP:  Make a list of all the positives and negatives involved in going on a diet.  If the positives outweigh the negatives you are ready for change!

True motivation must come from within!

I am always shocked by the amount of people who try to lose weight due to the pressure of others.  I cannot be any clearer with this statement; “If you attempt to diet to make someone else happy, you will fail!!”

So, in danger of sounding a bit like a bad actor, what is my motivation?  Well I have found success with clients when I ask them to take part in a simple writing task;

Take the time to write down and explain in detail why you believe that losing weight will improve your life. It is important not to focus on why it will make others happy, but to focus on the emotions involved personally to you and why your life will change for the better. This gives you a chance to express the stress, anger and frustration you may be feeling in a way that is very personal to yourself without having to talk it through with anyone else.  The cathartic nature of this task provides a much needed stress relief, but it also gives fresh perspective on a journey that for some has always been just a dream that lip service is constantly paid to.

In summary, losing weight is not as simple as being told by a young, in shape fitness trainer who has no kids, to eat less chocolate.  If you take note of these important psychological factors and begin to plan your regime properly and make sure you are not only ready for change but doing it for the right reasons, you will succeed.