The 'Rules'...

As a classic yo-yo dieter I have tried everything from Slimming World (slow and steady) to the 17 Day Diet (quick and cruel) and have decided that this time around I am going to try a combination of things I’ve learned along the way. Namely, eat less crap, move a bit more.

Apparently it’s the next big thing! I find the problem with any diet with ‘rules’ is that you quickly get tired of following the rules and your downfall to Dominoes is more spectacular that a slight wavering off the wagon.

There are things I have found from various diets that have worked, and I have managed to stick to. So, controversial as it is I am going to try to keep it simple and follow a few loose guidelines – don’t call them rules!

On the eating front:

-          Eat a low-fat, low-carb, high-protein breakfast

I find eggs and veggie sausages are a great alternative to cereals/toast as you won’t be as tempted to snack during the morning.

I recommend Cauldron Lincolnshire Veggie Sausages – they are genuinely tasty and although not the lowest fat will fill you up, and are a darn lot better than Walls bangers!

-          Unlimited fruit and vegetables

There are some diets that lambast fruits as high in sugar and carbs. But my feeling is that a pear is better than a croissant so whatevs.

-          Limit carbs

I find pasta, rice, potatoes deliciously addictive. When I tried the 17 Day Diet I was surprised how quickly I weaned myself off my addiction and saw results quickly.

-          Portion Control

Slimming World taught me to pretty much double, if not triple the veg on my plate. We are all used to a lot of protein and carbs as the building blocks of a meal but it’s easy to cut down calories by being inventive with veg. I’ll share some of my recipes in another post.

-          Drink more water

This is no nonsense stuff here. It’s true that when you are ‘hungry’ you can stave it off by hydrating. I’ve bought a bright pink water-bottle to put on my desk at work. It brightens my desk. Be like a kid – make your water-bottle/lunch box fun and attractive, makes it a lot harder to ignore!

Paperchase does some really fun lunch stuff – I love this water-bottle.

£6.00

And lunchboxworld.co.uk has a great selection of lunchboxes. This owl design is really cute:

  

£13.99

-          Treat yourself, but not everyday

Keep it simple and be smart!

We’ll soon see how successful I am!

What are your ‘guidelines’? Any obvious ones I’ve missed out.