I’m often asked if I eat my food cold – Yes I do. Not because I love cold turkey mince and stirfry with cold rice, but because otherwise I am just going to end up eating a McDonald’s which won’t make me feel my best throughout the day.
It won’t help me reach my goals, and it won’t help me stay lean for body weight exercises. I hear a lot from clients and friends saying they just want to lose “this bit” whilst pointing at their underarms/stomach/legs/muffin tops. When I tell them how to do it, they screw up their faces and say “Oh, that sounds like hard work”.
Sometimes, you just have to suck it up. It doesn’t have to be boring or plain, but it does have to be consistent, and followed even on the days when you just want cake/chocolate/crisps. Keep track of what you are eating and stay on it. When you ask me if it matters that you slipped three times in the week, my response will be the same screwed up look you gave me at the beginning of your nutrition journey, followed by “yes”.
Here are a good five tips to help in staying consistent when trying to lose those pounds:
- Be prepared. Man, this is important. Cook your meals the night before or in the morning. Have a nice little Tupperware set up. Take some snacks with you. When I worked in the city I used to take a six pack lunch bag with me, with three packed meals in and a tin of sardines and nuts (just in case). I also had a toothbrush and toothpaste because I didn’t want to be known as “the fish girl”, but my goals were important to me so I trekked that bag with me on three different trains before walking a mile home with it.
- If you don’t buy it, you won’t be tempted. If the food’s not in your cupboards, you won’t eat it. I know this is difficult when you have kids but it is do-able. What child NEEDS chocolate and crisps? I remember my mum always telling me to eat fruit if I was hungry… I also remember friends bringing over carrier bags of sweets and goodies if they were staying over as I was “that” kid – ha. If you truly want to reach your goals though, you won’t buy it.
- Have a snack in the day that you look forward to. Mine is always my dessert. That way, I eat well during the day and say no to a biscuit, a piece of cake or a sweet because I know at the end of the day I have my chocolate mousse with fruit and a spoonful of nut butter. I look forward to the end of the day, when I can chill out and have my favourite meal.
- Avoid binging. If you are doing your nutrition yourself don’t do everything at once. Don’t eliminate carbs/go low fat/cut out everything that has taste, and try to live on chicken, broccoli and rice. Yes it will work for the first 2-3 weeks but then it will become boring. You will begin to dream about food and your hand will begin to look like a Krispy Kreme. Instead, download MyFitnessPal and eat normally but upload what you are eating. That way you can have a good idea of how many carbs, proteins and fats you are consuming and begin to play with it. You won’t be depriving yourself, putting your body into any kind of starvation, and you can eat a varied diet whilst leaning up.
- Don’t weigh yourself every day. You will become obsessed. You want to have a relaxed approach with food whilst still losing body fat and feeling good about yourself. Constantly stepping onto the scales won’t get you to your goal any quicker. You want to lose weight very gradually so that it STAYS off. You want to enjoy the journey and focus on how you feel within yourself.
On top of that, have a physical performance goal. Something like running 5km in a certain time, being able to do 10 box jumps unbroken, or set yourself a body weight strength exercise (such as being able to squat your body weight). It will give you another purpose for your nutrition goal rather than a constant focus on how you look or what you weigh. Keep it varied, be consistent and enjoy your food.
If you enjoy your journey, you’ll love the results!
