It's that time of year again when a lot of people start to think about reducing their weight. The question is, why do we put it on in the first place? Yes our bodies do slow down more in winter and we need to protect from the cold so it is fairly normal to put on a few extra pounds. However, in my experience, when people come to me for weight reduction, they have been yo-yo dieting for years. If people want help with reducing weight, I now inform my clients that I am not really interested in just doing weight reduction. If the root of the problem still exists and not sorted then the pattern will just repeat: dieting, gaining weight, dieting, etc ..., which is both depressing and not good for the body.

What I help them to do is to re-think their lifestyle in relation to food. By educating themselves on food, not calories, not dieting, but just what foods are and what they do when they put them in their bodies, people become consciously aware and begin to see food for it's real purpose. Ultimately they no longer use foods for punishment/rewards but to feel physically and emotionally well, therefore, making healthy lifestyle changes in the long term.

So today I thought I'd give you a few tips on reducing weight permanently. Obviously I can't go into depth here but you'll get the idea. (This is not meant as medical advice, always consult your GP before embarking on any new regime or lifestyle change if you are in doubt)

1. CLEAN IT UP

Your language that is. For instance what we tell ourselves is the first step in anything. So 'losing' weight implies you may 'find' it again. Think about 'reducing' weight.

2. HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY

Take a look at your life, hold the mirror up to yourself, psychologically and ask why do you overeat. Identify the reasons, i.e. comfort, moods, control/lack of, substituting, fun, greed, protection, boredom, stress, etc.

3. REPLACE

Once you have identified the reason(s) and situations that trigger the eating, decide what you can do in it's place that you would enjoy. Get creative, don't stick to the usual, eat fruit instead, why does it have to be eating at all.

4. EDUCATION

Get yourself some on nutrition. Most people think eating healthily is eating vegetables, fruit, low fat foods and wholemeal bread. For instance, did you know that traditional foods that we are 'told' give us calcium, such as cheese and milk, actually leach calcium OUT of the body! By the way, so does coffee! You will get calcium from green leafy vegetables, water, sardines and almonds to mention but a few. I refer you to NEVER MIND YOUR MIND…WHAT ABOUT YOUR BODY? where we looked at this topic in more detail. However with your new knowledge don't do radical changes, especially with diet, let your body adapt.

5. IT STARTS IN THE MIND

Healthy living starts in the mind. This is probably the most important part. Start by thinking how do you want to feel, look. How do you want your health to be for the rest of your life. What will it be like if you ate what truly nourished and protected your body and had lots of energy, mentally and physically. How would it be if you rarely put more than 5 lbs of weight on in your life and got it off naturally, because your mind and body let you know that what is best for you. Begin to analyse foods, reading labels (low fat is usually loaded with so much other crap you would be better off with the original food).

6. ENJOY YOUR FOOD

Deepak Chopra in his books says …"you'll never put weight on if you ENJOY your food". He goes on to explain that most people use food to fill an emotional need or have a fear around it and that is why quite often, they will eat too quickly, almost as if they are guilty about it, or eat too much because they are greedy, maybe they were told always to eat everything up by their parents. Whatever the reason, he believes, if you eat natural, healthy foods and always sit and eat, without reading or watching TV, even without talking (okay a stretch for a lot of us) then we eat slowly and appreciate each mouthful for what it is doing to our body. Can you imagine doing that with a Big Mac!

7. VISUALISE YOUR GOAL

I do not mean just how you will look once you have reduced weight, although that is important and necessary. I also mean you get to your desired weight possibly more slowly, because you are making lifestyle changes, beginning with different thoughts which lead to different feelings and therefore different behaviours. This slow process is creating a new way of thinking, identifying with food in a healthy way, therefore by the time you get to your desired weight you should have some neural networks hard wired that tell you you are only attracted to certain foods and just the right amount.

8. REINFORCE

With plenty of re-enforcing i.e. visualising and consciously telling yourself why you choose to eat certain natural foods and not others such as crisps (hydrogenated fat) you actually begin to feel repulsed by the idea of introducing them into your body. Rather like an ex smoker and cigarettes, the very idea of inhaling those chemicals is disgusting to most ex smokers.

9. BEATING YOURSELF UP

Doesn't work, give it up! If you want to eat some crap, eat it and ENJOY it! Remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Attitudes take a little longer to get on board. Enjoy the journey.

10. BEING RELAXED

The whole process should be done in an enjoyable and relaxed manner, just this in itself, often makes us appreciate good, healthy foods more. When I became a vegetarian over 20 years ago, it took me a whole year to do it, even then I 'lapsed' sometimes, but I didn't beat myself up about it!

Until next week Onwards and Upwards and have a fantastically healthy week!