I used to be a serial ‘dieter’. I tried them all – from Weight Watchers, Atkins, and Jenny Craig to self-created versions of what I thought would make me lose 15lbs or so.

 

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None of them ever worked – at least not after a few weeks of feeling very deprived. You see, the thing is, I LOVE food – which is just as well because now I teach about it, write about it, play with it and create it. Basically I think about it all the time.

In addition, as a mom to two young boys, like many of you, I am up at 6am preparing breakfast and school lunches, thinking about what I’ll have for my own lunch, and planning for our family dinner. So, again like you, I’m continuously surrounded by food as well.

Although never really obese, my nickname when growing up (thanks to one of my five siblings) was ‘Fudge’ as I always had a ‘stone’ or so in excess weight. (FYI, a stone equates to 14lbs and is the common unit of weight measurement in the UK and Ireland.)

It wasn’t until years later that my dieting woes became a thing of the past – when my focus changed from being thin to getting healthier. I was in my late 30s and trying to conceive, so I started my ‘pre-pregnancy campaign’ to really clean up my diet, and that of my husband. (I took any opportunity to slip zinc-rich pumpkin seeds into his dishes – zinc being great for male fertility.) Thankfully, this all worked to our advantage, and we now have two wonderful, healthy sons.

By focusing on what I could eat – all that nutritious, delicious food that surrounds us – I soon realized that not only did I feel revitalized, but I easily attained, and maintained, my target weight. I had always thought that pregnancy and having kids automatically meant putting on weight, and often never being able to lose it. But, to my surprise, I was back to my pre-pregnancy weight within weeks and with little effort.

No fads, no diets, no magic pill in sight – and certainly no deprivation. So what was, and is, the secret to sustained weight loss?

It’s about enjoying healthy food for the right reasons, and understanding the positive impact this has on our body and our mind. Why would I ever not continue to enjoy a way of eating that has enabled me to not only look and feel my very best but to also have energy and enthusiasm to spare.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m an Irish, fun-loving gal, so I was never going to deprive myself of having a good time. I simply made a few smart, healthy adjustments here and there to my daily routine, learned to eat mindfully while enjoying the delights of life, such as red wine, quality chocolate, great coffee – but all in moderation.

Typically, when one wants to lose weight they know they face a period of ‘deprivation’ – they struggle to come to terms with all the things they will have to give up. From all my dieting experience, there is nothing worse than denying ourselves something we really want to enjoy. Isn’t life far too short for that?

We also know that diets don’t work. Some of the many reasons I don’t endorse them are:

• Diets are short-term solutions.

• We become obsessive and can’t stop thinking about the foods we really want to have.

• They make us unsociable, and there’s NO fun in that!

• We risk not getting the nutrients we need for good health, and, therefore, increase our chances of becoming physically and mentally ill.

• They lead to yo-yo dieting and weight fluctuations over the years (or decades).

• Diets slow down your metabolism, which means that weight goes back on even easier.

• They bring about feelings of guilt, failure and lack of confidence.

• We become self-absorbed about how we look, rather than how healthy we want to be, and how good we want to feel.

So, rather than thinking about what you CAN’T have, focus on what you CAN have. And this does NOT entail giving up your favorite foods, or your favorite treats.


There’s a healthier version of everything.

By focusing on being healthy, you will want to eat foods that are not only good for you, but that will enable you to feel energized, have great skin, and build up your immunity and, of course, manage your weight.

These are foods that don’t contain refined sugars, processed grains, hydrogenated or trans fats, and the plethora of permitted additives in our foods.

They are also the foods that make us fat. Not only that, they zap us of energy, making us feel lethargic. We, therefore, lose the motivation to do things, including striving to be healthy. In addition, these foods, particularly sugar, are addictive and cause us to crave more – that infamous rise in blood sugar levels, and then the crash. This abuse of insulin causes us to feel tired, stressed, and hungry all the time.

So in order to lose weight, focus more on being healthy, and all the amazing, tasty, nutritious foods you can have in doing so. It’s that simple.

Look out for the next part of this article, “Weight loss is about all you CAN have; that is better for you”.

Visit the Health & Vitality page to find out more about Liza's business.

_{Edited by Nedda Chaplin}
Images from Liza Rowan

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