Healthy Eating Tactic

Many years ago I used to struggle sticking to a healthier diet. I knew eating many more vegetables and fruits would provide me with great benefits for health as well as help lose weight naturally, but I didn't like many vegetables and I hated cooking or preparing foods, I always wanted food quickly. It was also very hard to break away from such strong eating habits.

The tactic I used in the end was to switch around my general habit, and not to cut out my "treats". At the time I used to eat too much "bad" foods with just a little health food to keep me heathly. What I did was switch that policy around, I would eat half a plateful of vegetables first (sometimes having to hold my nose), then eat some of my favourite foods, this acted like a reward for eating foods I wasn't that keen on. After a week or so I reduced the portion size of the junk foods I ate after the veg, this was so I could reduce calories but still feel as though I wasn't missing out on the tasty food I enjoyed. Also cutting portion size was really necessary because all those vegetables eaten first was filling my stomach and I was struggling to eat normal portions.

Eventually I got used to eating the vegetables, with the help of experimenting with herbs and spices which added more taste to the veg. Today I enjoy eating them and have slowly eliminated most junk foods from my diet. I feel much better in myself and have lots more energy!

I call it veg-power!!

A Simple Body Fat Test

A good test to reveal how lean you are is the pinch test, revealed by the diet doctors. Using the thumb and index finger pinch the loose skin at the back of the upper arm (At Triceps Muscles).

After squeezing fingers together around the loose skin, if the gap between your fingers is more than 2 cms (20 mm or 3/4 inch) then there's a good chance you are storing too much body fat. If you are no good with estimating lengths then see if you could slot your thumb through the gap, if you can then you may be storing too much body fat.

Remember however, this is only a guide so it may be best to reference this simple test with another more accurate test, such as using body fat calipers. If you cannot afford calipers or scales try measuring your waist first thing in the morning before eating. If it is above 35 inches (40 inches for men) then you may be carrying too much fat.

Help sticking to a new eating plan

In the beginning it can be extremely hard sticking to a new dietary eating plan, especially if it's a healthy one full of low-fat and sometimes "boring" health foods. Some experts say that we only need to practice many changes for about 3 weeks because that's the average time it takes for us to establish any new habits. However some people often find the first few weeks to be the biggest challenge of all.

I always found the best trick is to use a 80:20 rule.
This is where I do my best to stick to any new diet for 80 percent of the time. This leaves 20 percent to enjoy small indulgences. I make sure that I go for a day or two completely resisting any urge then I know I can have something "bad" the next morning. It alway indulge in the morning or midday because there's less chance that it will be stored as body fat, especially if the food is eaten within an hour after a training session. It's like I'm building up some "indulgence credit" before cashing them in for a treat.

After 3 weeks on the 80:20 rule, I change it to the 90:10 rule where my eating becomes even stricter, this helps boost fat loss results. Plus at this stage it's a lot easier to adjust because I've had 3 weeks to establish the new habits.

Lifestyle changes are not easy but with some sensible thought and planning you can make things easier. Look at our page on lifestyle changes for more information and advise.