Simple Healthy Habits

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If you have been following my blog since the beginning, you will know of my weight loss journey. In 2009 I transformed my unhealthy lifestyle into a healthier lifestyle and in the process lost four stone. Back then I successfully ticked all the boxes of an overweight unfit person by smoking, drinking, eating junk food and leading a sedentary lifestyle. Today, I have managed to keep the weight off with simple healthy habits that I have learnt along the way… and maybe a couple of slices of chocolate cake here and there too…

1. Don’t drink your calories. Alcoholic drinks, sodas, fruit juices and creamy-coffee-shop coffees all carry a high calorie price tag. Not only that, but most are heavily loaded with sugar. You can easily drink the calorie equivalent of a meal without realising it just by having a couple of glasses of wine or by ordering a cup of coffee when you are out. A Starbucks Iced Hazelnut Mocha has a massive 622 calories with an additional 73.6g of sugar – that is a huge overload of sugar in one hit considering 90g is our daily maximum!

Healthy Habit: It is easy to avoid these drinks if you replace them with something else. If you are immediately thirsty, drink water to quench the thirst. Try different herbal teas such as green tea, peppermint, red bush, chamomile, and fruit teas – they all have amazing health benefits and do not contain any empty calories or sugar.

2. Don’t buy it. If you go to the supermarket and buy a bag of doughnuts and a packet of cookies  in your weekly shop, you are inevitably going to eat them. It is easy to grab a sugary snack from the kitchen cupboard if it is sat there waiting for you. It makes it hard to eat well when you have chocolate temptations awaiting you in the fridge after a long tiring day at work.

Healthy Habit: So, stop buying them. There are plenty of other items in the supermarket without having to head towards the cakes and biscuits isle. Snack on fruit, nuts, rice cakes, whole grain crisps, oat cakes, and cereal bars. Keep your kitchen stocked up with healthy foods, and it will be much easier to stay on track.

3. Don’t deprive. Eliminating major food groups from your diet will only lead to problems later down the line. Our bodies require a nutritional balance of carbohydrates, protein, fibre and fat – and a little bit of sugar is good for you too! If you cut out carbs you will notice weight loss in the beginning, however it is an unsustainable diet as you will begin to crave instant energy foods – the fast track route to weight gain again!

Healthy Habit: Your diet should be high in whole grain foods such as oats, lentils, couscous, brown or wild rice, whole wheat pasta, granary bread, bulgur, quinoa, barley and whole grain cereal. These carbohydrates provide you with additional vitamins and minerals, a slow release of energy (keeping you fuller for longer), and a high fibre content for a healthy digestive system.

4. A little bit of what you fancy… It is no fun avoiding every cream cake, chocolate bar, ice cream or sweet thing that comes your way. It will only induce cravings and bad moods. If you are leading a healthy lifestyle by eating nourishing foods and keeping active, then there is no harm in giving into temptation every now and then. It is good for your diet and willpower too, as nothing is ever off-limits.

Healthy Habit: I don’t recommend stocking up on bags and bags sweet treats or huge cakes, but a delicious homemade piece in a tea-room is not such a bad thing. If you really fancy something a little unhealthy, then why not combine with a healthy habit – walk or cycle to the shops, or save it as a reward when you have finished your workout (remember, to keep things in balance).

5. Get Moving. The healthiest form of transportation is our own legs. Cars make life easy, but also makes us lazy. Including a daily walk into our lives is a good way to keep active, get fresh air and burn off some calories. If you walk as part of your daily routine, for example, getting to work, going to the shops, popping into town, or walking to a friend’s house – exercise will become effortless and you won’t even realise you are doing it!

Healthy Habit: Walking can be done absolutely anywhere. If you drive to work, make sure you get out on your lunch break for a 20-minute walk to stretch your legs and get the blood moving. If you don’t live within walking distance to many places, how about driving to the beach one sunny weekend and taking a walk along the coast.

6. Keep a routine. Eating three balanced meals a day at regular intervals is great for our bodies. If we go too long without a meal, we start craving instant energy foods to keep our blood sugar levels stable. Low blood sugar is the culprit for mood swings, irritability, and impatience. When we are tired or feeling low we opt for a quick fix rather than a healthier choice, so never allowing ourselves to get too hungry is key to weight loss.

Healthy Habit: Start the day right with a filling breakfast. Porridge is the best choice in the morning, as it provides a slow release of energy keeping you satisfied for longer. Healthy snacks such as rice cakes or oat cakes and hummus are great for keeping you full without causing a spike in blood sugar levels.

7. Do what you enjoy. Exercise doesn’t have to be a chore. In fact, by just doing a few of your favourite activities, you can really enjoy incorporating exercise into your life. You can’t love every fitness class out there, or be an avid swimmer or runner if that just isn’t you – everyone is different, with different interests and different capabilities, you just need to find things that suit you best.

Healthy Habit: I love yoga, but Pilates isn’t for me. I’m not one for doing weights in the gym, but will happily spend an hour swimming in the pool. The exercise bike doesn’t interest me much, but I can easily spend 30 minutes on the step machine, stepping away to my favourite songs. Everyone is different. Try new things – if it works for you, great, do it often! If it bores you, or you find it a chore, then stop doing it.

8. Be realistic. We can’t all have a super-model body. Well, we can, but that means that we can hardly eat very much, giving us little energy to exercise and stay healthy. Don’t set yourself unrealistic targets to reach a certain size by a certain date or occasion. Don’t stop eating just to fit into a particular item of clothing. It’s a short-term solution and it is bad for your health. By eating well and keeping active, weight loss will take care of itself.

Healthy Habit: Trust in yourself that you are making the best choices for your health and wellbeing. Don’t obsess over weight loss or if you have gained or lost a pound. Don’t put yourself in an instant bad mood by depriving yourself of something tasty. We, as human beings, are designed to live for a very long time – so why rush and stress our systems by trying to get to your perfect weight in very short time. Start with simple healthy habits and enjoy the journey.