» New year diet tips
Zara Baker dishes up some sneaky dieting tips to make it easier to stick to those new year resolutions
January is here – the month famed for making and breaking resolutions. Our good intentions after a Christmas spent over-indulging in food and alcohol fall by the wayside in a bid for warm comfort food during the cold month ahead. The thought of swapping a hearty homemade meal for a cold salad is seriously difficult when layered up in jumpers and cardigans to keep warm.
The answer? Ease into your new year diet resolution. It’s all to easy to fall into eating habits over the festive season with tins of sweets and dinners with family circulating daily. If we suddenly cut back on the foods we enjoy, we’re all the more likely to fall back into the old routine and eat as soon as we are tired, have a bad day or simply feel too cold.
Cutting back on portion sizes is the way to ease into healthy eating, adjusting your diet gradually so your body doesn’t get a huge shock and urge you to pick up a pack of biscuits on your next shop.
“If you find yourself stopping for a takeaway on the way home becoming a regular occurrence, stop and ask yourself why”
Eat the foods you enjoy but in moderation. If you have one evening or day of over-indulgence, eat sensibly the following day. One key rule to eating better is never food shop when you’re hungry. As your body cries out for food, you will inevitably find yourself drawn to sweet treats.
Similarly, if you find yourself stopping for a takeaway on the way home becoming a regular occurrence, stop and ask yourself why. A treat every so often is one thing, but using it as an excuse not to cook is a bad habit that should be fixed. There are a number of healthy foods including vegetable stir-fry, pasta dishes and homemade soups that can be prepared in a matter of minutes.
Brush teeth and floss soon after eating so you will feel less inclined to snack later in the evening. Drink plenty of water, as we can often mistake thirst for hunger. Make it a new year’s resolution to cut down portion sizes and sides such as bread and butter. Introduce more disease-fighting fruit and vegetables to your meal time and fill up without the fats.
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