Not all biscuits are created equal 🍪

There are more obviously more nutritious snacks than biscuits of course but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a biscuit with a cuppa when you fancy it. The natural assumption is that they’re ‘bad’ and not compatible with trying to lose weight. This is certainly not the case. The main issues with biscuits are usually that you almost eat them without noticing and therefore it’s really easy to eat more than you realise. Clients often say they can’t stop once they open a packet – I know that feeling! You start with one and before you know it you’ve hoovered up 4! However there’s quite a difference between having 4 party rings and 4 chocolate digestives!

The reality is that not all biscuits are created equal so being aware of the calories in various biscuits allows you to make a more informed choice. 4 party rings is only 112 cals which is easy to factor into your daily calories, whereas 4 chocolate digestives are 332 cals which is a much more significant amount. Being aware of the lower calorie options might just help enable you to enjoy a biscuit whilst still moving towards your weight loss goal.

So here are some of the more popular biscuits on the market (calories are for one biscuit) Oh and yes I know I’ve slipped the Jaffa cakes in there… which are officially cakes (for VAT purposes)… but I mean they’re clearly not are they 😉.. and whatever they are they’re still yummy with a cuppa.

The biscuits pictured are:
Party rings, lotus snack pack biscuits, Rich tea biscuits, Nice biscuits, Malted Milk biscuits, Jaffa cakes, Oreos, Custard Creams, Digestive biscuits, Hobnobs, Jamie Dodgers and Milk Chocolate Digestive biscuits.

So remember knowledge is power and biscuits are a perfectly good snack if you want them!

Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: A few home truths

January 17, 2023 Dr Nancy P

Tuesday Tip: A few home truths 🏠

A few things you might need to read this January.

#1 Absolutely any food or drink can fit into your diet – if you control the amounts you eat.

#2 There are not ‘good’ or ‘bad’ foods – stop moralising food itself. It’s all about quantity – anything in excess is bad.

#3 Weight loss and health are not the same thing. Your health is a result of lots of factors over time. You can eat for health and you can eat for weight loss, or you can do both! Your health expands beyond what you eat though so take a holistic approach.

#4 Exercise is for physical and mental well being – not to burn calories / lose weight. Separate the two.

#5 Fat loss happens when you’re consistently in a calorie deficit over time – not days, not weeks but months. How you achieve that calorie deficit is up to you but if you want it to be something you can sustain long term then the best approach is to include all the stuff you enjoy eating, just in smaller quantities.

#6 Beware of following ‘meal plans’ to

lose weight without changing your habits and behaviours to help you maintain that loss long term.

#7 You don’t need to be starving to be losing fat but you do need to expect some

hunger if you’re genuinely eating at a calorie deficit. You can help by prioritising high volume foods and including plenty of fibre rich foods, proteins and fats to keep you full. However don’t cut out the carbs as you need them for energy.

#8 If you want to be successful long term then don’t focus on calorie and exercise targets, you need to change your mindset too. Be kind to yourself and try to stop the the all or nothing mentality

#9 Before you rush to follow the advice of some fitness/nutrition guru ask yourself what do they have to gain? Are they selling a book? Are they marketing supplements? Are they touting for online clients? So before you jump on another diet fad stop and consider who actually benefits from it. The basic information you need to lose weight is simply a calorie deficit. Eat less. If you’re not losing weight you’re not in a deficit. Simple. Whether that’s because your target is incorrect, or your calculations of what you’re eating are incorrect, or whether a medical condition is impacting your calorie requirements.. the basic principal remains. No weight loss means no calorie deficit.

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Consistency over Perfection….

January 11, 2023January 11, 2023 Dr Nancy P

Consistency over Perfection…. 🙌🏼

This time of year in particular there’s often a really gung ho attitude to weight loss. It’s understandable – new year, new you and it’s natural to want to have a clean start. However it’s worth just taking a step back and considering your approach. On the left is the person who is all about perfection. January 1st hits and they are 100% on it – they start a new fitness plan/ diet and go all out. They drastically cut calories, cut out all what they consider ‘bad’ foods, don’t go out, exercise 7 days a week. They make quick progress to start with but they eventually either hit a wall and their energy and enthusiasm drops, or ‘life’ happens – a social event they can’t get out of, they get sick, a stressful event etc etc. They ‘fall off the wagon’ and overeat or miss a workout etc and that’s it – they can’t be perfect so what’s the point? Progress stalls and they give up.

On the right is the person who starts slow. They make some small sustainable changes – a reasonable calorie deficit they can stick to, they include all the foods they enjoy within that, they exercise 3 times a week because that’s what they can fit into their life, they socialise but limit damage when they do. They also have ‘bad’ days, and ‘life’ happens too but when they ‘fall off the wagon’ they get back on track the next day.

They don’t make progress as fast, but they’ve made sensible, sustainable choices they can stick to so over the longer term they actually make more progress – that lasts.

Being consistent trumps being perfect over time – because no one can maintain perfection every day, every week and every month. Being ‘good enough’ consistently is how true, long lasting sustainable progress happens. So resist the temptation and go for the slow burn!

Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: Say No to ‘Detoxes’

January 10, 2023 Dr Nancy P

Tuesday Tip: Say No to ‘Detoxes’ 🥗

It’s January and predictably across social media people are peddling “detoxes” and “cleanses”. We’re told our bodies are full of toxins from overeating at Xmas, and if you follow plan X / buy the pill/tea/shake you’ll get rid of them and lose weight/ feel/look amazing. You don’t need it, your liver and kidneys do a great job of “detoxing” you, and these products can make your health worse. But we still fall for it.. why?

Post holiday detox

Over holidays we eat and drink more, so we crave simple, nutrient dense food like salads. Physically it feels good, and psychologically it feels good too; drawing a line under all the junk. This sort of “detox” isn’t silly, it’s just a word we use to say “lets get back to eating well”

Bloat

Over-indulging, or eating certain foods makes you bloated e.g. rich foods, alcohol, beans, or foods high in salt, certain starches and sugars. If it’s a chronic issue see a Dr. If you’ve been eating lots of salt you will retain water, making you look and feel bloated, reduce the salt for a few days and you’ll be fine. Overdo the food and drink? You don’t need to do anything just eat normally for a few days.

Constipation

If you’ve been eating badly you may be constipated. Most detoxes /cleanses are laxatives, which can permanently damage your intestines. So first of all, increase water and fibre intake, then increase fruits, veg, and whole grains, but do it gradually; a sudden fibre increase can make you feel worse. If that doesn’t help, see a Dr, not a Facebook ‘expert’.

Fat loss

No, just no. A juice/pill/shake won’t do that! Sometimes just buying something is a powerful psychological message that you’re making a change and acts as a kickstart; which is why we fall for it. Sadly it won’t last, and you’re left out of pocket and likely to rebound. The more radical approach to losing weight, the more likely it is to fail. Slow and steady wins the race; make small, sustainable habit changes and you’ll reap the rewards.

It’s normal to want to reset, feel better and make changes, but you don’t need a “detox”. Just try to get some sleep, drink more water, eat veg and get moving. You’ll look and feel far better for it!

Happy Tuesday 🤗xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Practical New Year’s Resolutions…

January 4, 2023 Dr Nancy P

Practical New Year’s Resolutions… ⭐️

It’s January which means many of us are full of New Year’s resolutions and wanting to make a fresh start at health and fitness. Often these resolutions will be things like to “lose weight” or to “get fit” or perhaps “eat healthier’. Now whilst these are all great goals they’re quite hard to achieve without some practical steps. They’re outcomes of changes you need to make rather than actual resolutions per se.

So if you are making New Year’s resolutions about your health and fitness, then instead of making generalised statements try to focus instead on small actions you can take every day that will lead to those end goals.

So instead of resolving to lose weight, perhaps instead resolve to identify where the excess calories are in your diet. Are they coming from alcohol? Extra snacks? Take aways? Portion sizes? And then you can take steps to reduce them and therefore reduce your calorie intake (leading to fat and weight loss).

Instead of resolving to “get fit”, instead focus on upping your daily steps. Rather than choosing an arbitrary goal of 10,000 steps, instead commit to increasing your steps. If you’re already hitting 12,000 steps a day then aim for 14,000, if you’re getting 4,000 aim for 6,000 etc. Also consider adding some exercise 1-3 times a week. It doesn’t matter what that exercise is really just pick something you actually enjoy; dancing, running, weight lifting, swimming cycling etc.

Rather than resolving to “Eat healthier” commit to adding a portion of fruit or veg to every meal. Aside from the fact that it will increase your overall nutrition, it will increase fibre levels, and will probably help reduce overall calories as by filling some of your plate with fruit and veg you’re going to eat less of other, more calorie dense foods.

This approach is far better than making massive changes, subscribing to fad diets/detoxes/challenges etc which may well cause you to lose weight quickly but will also see you putting that weight back on once you’re back to eating normally again. Take small sustainable steps and you’ll find you’ll hit your goals and be able to maintain it within your lifestyle too! 🙂