Tag: healthy foods

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

‘Diet’ red flags

Dr Nancy P

‘Diet’ red flags 🚩

Diet culture is full of ‘solutions’ for weight loss. People pray on people’s desire for ‘guaranteed’ fixes and social media is FULL of “guaranteed” ways you can lose weight/fat. You’ll see plenty of self proclaimed fitness/health/well being “coaches” and influencers trying to suggest you really need to do whatever it is they’re selling.

There are a number of red flags to look out for when thinking about ‘dieting’.

Replacing whole foods with Juice Cleanses / Supplements or going on a ‘detox’ can result in fewer calories and rapid initial water loss and a possible calorie deficit from meal replacement. Supplements may also provide a laxative effect or promote excessive bowel movements etc which result in water loss. None of which are sustainable or healthy long term aproaches

to weight loss.

Labelling foods as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, or having ‘cheat’ meals are other terms to be wary of.

No food is good or bad – all foods are good, it’s just about quantity. Food and morality have nothing to do with each other and we shouldn’t attach guilt to eating certain types of food which we enjoy.

Excluding whole food groups (carbs/sugar/ etc) is also unnecessary and unsustainable. Unless you have a medically diagnoses reason to exclude a food then all foods can fit into a healthy diet.

Labelling foods and taking about diets and foods in these ways that cast judgment just leads to increased anxiety and confusion. Allow yourself food freedom, remove the guilt from certain foods and accept that all foods are permitted – it will lead to a far healthier relationship with food and a far happier path to weight loss. It also means you can save your pennies and avoid paying people for these products which make promises they can’t deliver.

🤗

xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips, Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: Just Eat Less

Dr Nancy P

Tuesday Tip: Just Eat Less 🍟

If you want to lose weight/fat but don’t know where to start the simplest thing to do is – just eat less! No I’m not being facetious – just bear with me here.

As you will no doubt have realised from my posts the key to losing weight/fat is by being in calorie deficit. Obviously one really good way to do this is by counting calories. But this may not be something you want to do or feel ready to do for whatever reason.

So the simplest way to achieve a calorie deficit, without following some unsustainable diet trend, going on a ‘detox’ or excluding food groups is to eat exactly what you’re eating now…. But just eat less of it!

So instead of having seconds at dinner, just have one plate of food, instead of having 2 pieces of chicken thigh, have 1, instead of snacking on 4 biscuits, have 2, drop to one milky coffee a day instead of three… etc etc.

Just these simple changes will probably save you at least 400-800 calories a day (if not more). Best of all you probably won’t notice the changes either.

You could also try some lower calorie swaps – you still don’t need to count calories to do this. You can swap cooking oil for a one cal

spray, swap crisps for pop chips, swap chocolate digestives for custard creams, swap red wine for a slimline gin and tonic etc

Trying to lose weight/fat can seem really overwhelming and complicated at first but it doesn’t need to be. Keep it simple and you’ll see progress!

Happy Tuesday 🤗

Xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

What you think weight loss involves…and what it actually involves…

Dr Nancy P

What you think weight loss involves…and what it actually involves… 🥗

There are many misconceptions about what you need to do to lose weight or fat. You’ll hear lots of people saying you need to ‘eat clean’, cut out carbs, do a detox, have a juice cleanse, avoid sugar and bad foods, and stop snacking etc. However it’s really far more straight forward than that.

There are no magic pills, no secret cleanses or detoxes. There’s definitely no need to exclude food groups. There is no such thing as ‘clean’ food – it’s a totally meaningless term – and bears very little relationship to weight/fat loss. No foods are inherently bad – rather it’s the quantity of them that you eat that makes them better or worse than others. Snacking is also not inherently bad or a barrier to weight loss, in fact strategic snacking can help you lose weight.

Ultimately it all comes down to calories. However you choose to achieve it you need a calorie deficit to lose weight/fat. Now it may be that reducing certain foods in your diet help you achieve this e.g. reducing the portion size of pasta, swapping some snacks for lower calorie options, or reducing alcohol intake. But you don’t need to cut them out completely. You also can’t guarantee weight loss via ‘clean’ eating – as often those ‘clean’ foods are high in calories (e.g. avocado, nuts, smoothies etc). That’s not to say they’re ‘bad’ – they obviously have lots of benefits in terms of nutrients but the calories still count.

If you want to achieve life long, sustainable weight loss then no diet fad /pills/ detoxes or exclusion diets will work long term. Instead focus on moderation, calorie awareness and incorporating all the foods you enjoy within a balanced diet!

🤗
xx

Tuesday Tip

Tuesday Tip: 10,000 Steps?

Dr Nancy P

Tuesday Tip: 10,000 steps? 🚶🏼‍♀️

We’re all used to being told to walk 10,000 steps a day – but why 10,000?

It turns out the 10,000 number isn’t based on any particular research or evidence, it’s in fact based on marketing for a Japanese pedometer in the 1960s and may not be the holy grail for health it’s built up to be.

10,000 steps equates to roughly 5 miles (depending on gait etc) – when you’re just starting out that’s actually a really long way! You may not have the confidence, fitness or time to get close to 10,000. So having that goal can backfire if you’re constantly not hitting it and feeling bad. Also of course most trackers tend not to include things like swimming, cycling or spinning in the step count or any resistance training so it’s not an accurate measure of activity. On the flip side for some hitting 10,000 is a walk in the park (🤣) due to their job or commute so why have that as the goal?

A better approach, and one I use with my clients, is to track your current steps for a week or so, and look at the patterns. Then set goals based on those. If on work days you’re only hitting 4,000 steps, there’s no point aiming for 10,000 if you can’t hit them, instead aim for 6,000 instead – a moderate increase in activity. And rather than just focusing on steps think about increasing overall activity across the week.

Studies suggest 150 mins of moderate aerobic activity (walking, Swimming, gardening etc) , or 75 mins of intense activity (hiit classes, spin, etc) per week is the minimum requirement for overall health. If you’re trying to lose weight start there and then if you’re hitting it increase the goals.

When it comes to fat loss increases in NEAT (Non-exercise activity thermogenesis) or the energy expended for everything we do that is not sleeping, eating or sports-like exercise, is what matters in terms of increasing your overall calorie burn. So garden, walk, fidget, stand up – be as active as you can! And forget 10,000 and set yourself some realistic step goals.

Happy Tuesday 🤗

Xx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Sweet potato are a healthier option… right?

Dr Nancy P

Sweet potato are a healthier option… right? 🍟

There’s a common misconception that ‘normal’ white potatoes are bad, and unhealthy whilst sweet potatoes are the ‘good’, healthy option.

As a result I often hear clients saying they’ve gone for the ‘healthy’ option of sweet potato fries instead of normal potato fries and the assumption is that they’re lower calorie.

In reality both types of potato have lots of health benefits. White potatoes are high in vitamin C, B6, potassium and fibre, whilst sweet potatoes have all that and high levels of beta-carotene (which converts to vitamin A) but they have lower levels of protein and more sugar than white potatoes. Whilst raw sweet potatoes are lower GI (i.e. less likely to cause a rapid rise in blood glucose) baked sweet potatoes actually have a higher GI than baked white potatoes, so it’s not quite as simple as we may think.

Both types of potato have nutritional benefits and both are great foods to include in your diet, but if you’re watching your calorie intake and choosing sweet potato fries because you believe them to be a lower calorie option then think again. This example is from a high street restaurant (Bills) and demonstrates what a difference there is between the two.

When it comes to calories and fat normal fries are actually the better option … but frankly both are still fried in oil so neither is a particularly low calorie or ‘healthy’ choice per se so just have whichever you prefer! 🤗🍠🥔🍟

Enjoy 🤗

xx