Stop Counting Calories

While calorie counting can be useful at the beginning of your weight loss journey, it quickly becomes counterproductive. Your ultimate goal is to develop a healthy lifestyle for yourself, not a diet that you follow for a while before reverting to your old destructive eating habits. A diet should not be a quick fix, but a way of life. Change needs to be implemented slowly and progressively, and you want to cultivate new habits with deep roots. Once a habit is formed, it doesn't require willpower any more, as it becomes automatic, just like having a shower and putting your clothes on. If you stick to a healthy eating plan and exercise moderately, your metabolism will gradually improve and weight loss will follow automatically, as your inner organs recover and your liver in particular is able to perform its main job, which is burning calories to supply your body with constant energy.

Many people find they cannot stick to a diet because the mental energy required to measure each portion of food while counting calories is just too great. Calorie-counting is unnecessary when you eat nutritionally balanced meals as I suggest in my book. These meals contain enough energy for the average adult, and there is no need to become obsessed with counting calories. Just listen to your hunger signals, and eat accordingly. In the beginning this might be a challenge, especially if you've always eaten large portions. Reduce your portions progressively, and take time to chew your food thoroughly, so your brain can receive the message of satiety, a feeling of fullness. Leave the table when you feel that you've had enough to satisfy your hunger, but with room for more food in your stomach. After a while your  stomach will begin to shrink, and your brain will become attuned to your body, and able to acknowledge when you need to stop eating. Don't overload your plate, as you will tend to finish what is on it. Instead, put less food on your plate deliberately, while taking care of the presentation. We eat with our eyes as much as our mouth, and a well-presented meal is much more satisfying than something unsightly thrown on a plate!

Understand the difference between physical and psychological hunger. 'Stomach' hunger is true hunger and needs to be satisfied. 'Head' hunger can arise out of boredom or stress. It's not a real need to replenish your energy stores, but rather an impulse to put something in your mouth in order to feel better. If this happens to you, think about other ways to alleviate negative feelings or restlessness. Do something to take your mind off food. Have a piece of fruit. An apple, a carrot or a celery stick can do wonders, as they satisfy your need to chew. Chewing in itself has a relaxing effect and has been shown to enhance brain activity. Sugarless gum may help, although I personally find it often makes me even hungrier. Drink a lot of water to reduce your hunger and appetite. When you're dehydrated you tend to eat more, and a lot of people mistake thirst for hunger. Make it a habit to stop eating as soon as you feel satisfied, and you will never need to count calories or go on a diet again, especially if you stick to the foods I recommend in my book.

For more useful information, you can order a hard copy or an ebook version of 'The Magic of Sensible Dieting', by clicking on the link at the top left of my blog page.

All the best and much love,

Bella

How to Have More Willpower

"The best way to think of willpower is not as some shapeless behavioural trait but as a sort of psychic muscle, one that can atrophy or grow stronger depending on how it is used." - Jeffrey Kluger (award-winning senior writer at Time)

I like the idea of comparing willpower to a muscle, as it gives us hope that we can increase the amount of willpower we have, just like we can strengthen our muscles with regular exercise.

The force behind willpower is motivation. Without motivation, you can't achieve anything, as there is nothing to drive you towards your goal. Motivation is a sort of open-mindedness, a willingness to change and to give anything a go, if it helps you move in the direction of your choice. It entails a 'bigger picture', something that you really really want, something for which you're prepared to put in special efforts on a daily basis. Visualise what this bigger picture means to you. Imagine yourself having already achieved what you set out to do. Imagine yourself being that person, and feel what it feels like.

At the beginning of every life-changing journey, you use decision-making to choose the habits you want to adopt. You use willpower to get the habit started. Willpower is the ability to choose one course of action over another. It means delaying instant gratification, as there is something bigger than instant pleasure you want to achieve. Willpower is the power to say 'no' to temptation, while at the same time saying 'yes' to things you might not necessarily feel like doing. If you're studying for instance, you want to say 'no' to distractions like television shows, computer games or parties, and say 'yes' to spending large chunks of time with your books and notes, understanding and memorising new concepts.

The Magic of Willpower happens when you've created good habits for yourself, whether you want to pass an exam, lose weight, get into shape or simply live a more balanced lifestyle. Learning to play the piano is a good example: to master this complex instrument, regularity of practice is what guarantees your progress. You need to put aside half an hour or an hour every day, no matter what else is goes on in your life. Once this practice is in place, you won't have any trouble adhering to it. It will become an integral part of your routine, just like getting dressed or brushing your teeth.

Once the new habit is formed, the power of this magical process will take over. Don't make the mistake of wanting to do too much at the beginning though. Small habits are easier to incorporate into your lifestyle, like a twenty-minute walk compared to an hour long workout at the gym. Repetition and consistency are the key to steady improvement. Big tasks need to be divided into smaller, manageable steps, or they may seem overwhelming. When I write a book, I see this project as one paragraph at a time. I never imagine myself having to write 200 pages in one go!

The good news is that when your habit is firmly in place, you're free from the need to make decisions and to use willpower. You don't need willpower any more to follow this course of action, as it has become automatic. You have conditioned your brain and your body to behave that way, and it's now part of who you are. As you change, you create a new 'self-image', how you view yourself, and this is the true key to success, as this behaviour has now become an integral part of yourself.

For more information on how to tap into your own willpower and make your dreams come true, click on the icon at the top left of the page and you will be able to purchase a hard copy or the ebook version of my book, 'The Magic of Willpower'.

With love and my best wishes for your personal success,

Bella

Painting: 'Sea Turtles' by Maria Ryan

Nine Strategies to Beat Hunger When You're on a Diet

Diets fail for many different reasons, and one of them is hunger: an uncomfortable sensation that we humans are biologically designed to avoid. This complex process is regulated by numerous hormones and neurotransmitters in the brain. We get hungry for physiological reasons (when our body needs nourishment) and psychological reasons (e.g. stress or boredom). There is a difference between real 'stomach' hunger and so-called 'head' hunger, although drawing the line between the two is not always easy. Psychological reasons can influence physiology, like when you're in shock and cannot eat, even though your body needs energy. Regardless of the origin of your hunger, here are some proven strategies to help you beat this painful feeling and stay on track with weight loss:

1) Don't cut calories too low. 
The stricter your diet, the more you will be likely to experience hunger, so it's important not to cut your food intake too low. This is the main reason why diets fail: because they are too restrictive. When we're not allowed to have something, we want it more, so it's also important not to eliminate certain foods completely. Anything in moderation can't do much harm, especially if you don't consume it regularly. The occasional treat won't ruin your diet, but consistently overindulging in ice cream for example will sabotage your efforts. Strict diets not only make you hungry, but your body goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows down, which means you'll burn less calories and lose weight more slowly.

2) Eat more complex carbohydrates.
Refined sugars are a no-no for obvious reasons, especially as they are followed by a surge of insulin followed by the inevitable 'crash' as your blood sugar suddenly drops and leaves you exhausted and ravenous. Slow carbohydrates like whole meal breads, whole meal pasta, brown rice, oats, quinoa, lentils and sweet potato are excellent for weight loss, as they don't have this effect. On the contrary, they give you sustained energy and make you feel full. They are 'low GI', which means they are broken down and absorbed slowly, keeping your blood sugar on an even keel. They also influence your mood positively as they have been linked to an increase in the brain of the feel-good neurotransmitter Serotonin.

3) Eat more fruit.
If your stomach rumbles and it's still a while before your next meal, have an apple, a pear, a banana or a cup of berries. This is often all you need to quell your hunger. I don't know how fruit got such a bad name when it's actually good for your health and very satisfying.  The fructose contained in fruit works to refill liver glycogen, sending a signal to the brain, thus making you feel fuller. This is why people who include moderate amounts of fruit in their diet report feeling less hungry. This is an addition to the other benefits of fruit: fibre, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants. Of course we are talking about whole fruit here - stay away from juices!

4) Eat more fibre.
Fibre is quite miraculous, and totally devoid of calories. It adds bulk to your food and makes you feel full, while lowering the GI of your meal. It delays stomach emptying, and you tend to feel satisfied for longer. By adding volume to your meal, fibre contributes to stretching your stomach, and the brain thinks you're full. How do you increase your fibre intake? Focus on soups, vegetable curries, stews and stir fries. Have lots of salads. Besides eating fruit and vegetables, it's essential to stick to unrefined products like whole meal cereals, breads and pasta. Remember to have pulses and legumes as they are 'nutritional powerhouses', and to add nuts and seeds to your meals.

5) Eat more fat.
Low-fat diets tend to leave people hungry. Fat contributes to lowering the GI of your meals, and like fibre it slows gastric emptying. Dietary fat helps you feel fuller for longer between meals, as you food sits in your stomach longer. Adding fat to your dishes also makes them more tasteful. Without fat, food often tastes like cardboard. Fat makes food more palatable, and thus more satisfying, which plays a big role as people tend to abandon diets that are tasteless. Avoid cooking or frying in fat though. Instead, add fat towards the end of your cooking, by drizzling olive oil or adding a bit of fresh butter to your dish. If you need to fry something, use coconut oil: it's the only oil that remains stable when heated. Most other oils, including vegetable oils, become toxic at high temperatures, as their structure is altered by heat. To add 'good' fats to your diet, it's a good idea to consume nuts in moderation. It has been proven that people who include nuts in their diet (about a handful a day) are less hungry than those who don't. Eating nuts also increases your life span.

6) Drink more water.
Drinking at least eight glasses of water a day helps reduce hunger pangs. Water makes you feel fuller. It stops you from eating large quantities if you consume it before a meal. Water works well in conjunction with fibre, which acts like a sponge, increasing the bulk of your food and stretching your stomach. Another reason for drinking more water is that thirst is often mistaken for hunger. You might feel hungry, when in reality you're simply dehydrated. Before grabbing something to eat, fill up on water. Make it a habit to carry a water bottle with you everywhere you go, and sip some water throughout the day to replenish your body cells. Water is great if you suffer from stress and headaches. Water not only helps keep hunger at bay, it also stimulates your metabolism and assists your kidney and liver. You liver is your major detoxification and energy-burning organ, and drinking water will help it work efficiently.

7) Exercise moderately.
Moderate exercise has been shown to stabilise blood sugar levels and regulate hunger pangs, especially if you do it on a regular basis. Exercise is a natural antidepressant. It lifts your mood, which is important, as you tend to eat more sugar and junk food when you feel low. When you feel better about yourself you also tend to stick to your diet, as you're more likely to take better care of yourself. Exercise can be relaxing and it takes your mind off your problems, while alleviating stress and boredom. It gives you a sense of accomplishment and motivates you to stay on track.

8) Avoid 'diet perfectionism'.
In my book 'The Magic of Sensible Dieting', I devote a whole chapter to this destructive mindset. Diet perfectionism is sure to make you fail, because it is impossible to be perfect all the time when you follow a weight loss programme. While you need to adhere to certain guidelines like eating a wholesome breakfast, avoid eating late at night and eating several small meals a day, you also need to have a flexible approach to dieting if you want to succeed. If you feel guilty and miserable just because you had a piece of chocolate cake, you might believe that your diet is ruined and eat the entire cake, and abandon your diet altogether. This type of rigid dieting is bound to fail. You will possibly put on more weight in the long term, rather than losing it. 

The truth is that small deviations don't do much harm in the context of a long-term healthy eating approach. If you've dieted for the last five days and decide to have a handful of cookies, because you really fancy them, it won't do you much harm. But if you decide that you're a worthless piece of crap without willpower and eat another 1000 calories of cookies to punish yourself, you're turning this slight deviation into a big problem. Always include periods of 'free' eating (on the weekend for example) and include your favourite treats in your diet, without going overboard of course.

9) Welcome hunger instead of trying to avoid it at all cost.
Hunger is not as bad as it seems. Hunger means you're burning energy and shedding excess weight, which is what you want after all. To feel slightly hungry after a meal may also be a sign that you're getting used to eating smaller quantities and that your stomach is 'shrinking'. It takes time for your body to adjust to this new way of life. If you're used to eating a lot of junk food and switch to a diet based on fruit, vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, healthy carbs and lean protein, your body will be in shock for a while. Give yourself enough time to get used to being healthy! The body is a marvellous machine, and even if it has been abused for a long time, it longs to be healthy and to be looked after properly. Your body doesn't work against you. It works for you, but you need to give it a chance. 

It can be good feel hungry sometimes. Before a meal, it means you need to replenish your energy stores. Hunger can be healthy, and to experience it shows that you're in tune with your body's signals. Overweight and obese people often forget what real stomach hunger feels like, due to overeating all the time, and they need to learn to identify true hunger signals, which are not the same as a desire to eat because something looks appetising. Make a decision not to be scared of hunger and welcome it instead. After all, there are a lot of healthy foods you can eat to satisfy your body's needs as well as your taste buds.

I would love to read your comments and suggestions on this article!

With love,

Bella

Follow Your Passion!

"Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you." - Oprah Winfrey

Passion is the energy that propels you forward. It gives meaning to your life. It fills you with excitement, happiness and anticipation. It nurtures the flame of your imagination. It keeps you going in times of doubt and insecurity. Passion maintains your focus and stops you from giving up. There might be a mountain in front of you, but you're ready to climb it, and you can see yourself at the top. 

Passion means doing the things you love, the things you were born to do. You may be good at certain things, but the difference is to do what you really love. You can lose yourself in this activity to the extent that you lose track of time. It is totally engrossing for you, and it never seems like a chore. Whether you're writing, painting, learning to play a musical instrument, designing a new dish, a new lounge room or a new choreography, it doesn't matter, as long as it unlocks the positive passion energy within you. 

Today, ask yourself what you love doing. Make sure you allocate some time in your busy day to do it. Start with 15 minutes and see what happens. Whatever it is, you don't have to do it all day, every day. Dedicating just one hour a day to an inspiring, creative activity is enough to enhance your wellbeing and lower your stress levels. As long as you're passionate about it, it will refresh, energise and invigorate your life. 

Passion is the driving force behind success and happiness. It gives you a sense of personal power and accomplishment, as you're achieving a goal with something that gives you pleasure and satisfaction. 

Painting: 'Dancer' by Steve Henderson