19th January 2011

If you have made mistakes, even serious ones, there is always another chance for you. What we call failure is not the falling down, but the staying down. Mary Pickford

It’s easy to write a list of reasons why you want to lose weight; it’s not so easy to remember those reasons when you’re about to eat something that you know will stop that weight loss! We need to remind ourselves daily, whether you use a paper tracker, a tracker journal or online, each day before you start writing what you eat, write a reason why you’d like to lose weight. Keep reminding yourself of all the benefits. It’s so much easier to succeed when you know why you want to.

At Christmas, I bought a container of Haagen-Dazs Tiramisu Ice Cream. To say that it’s delicious is to say that Brad Pitt is cute. Yummy doesn’t even begin to cut it.

Last night, when I got in, although I was tired, I wasn’t particularly hungry I contemplated having some. I glanced at the nutrition information, only to discover that each 100g serving had 7pp in, and I also realised that it was a tub of empty calories. Yikes! Clearly, it’s a dessert for very special occasions – and not something to be consumed every day.

For a few minutes, I was a bit disappointed. But then I realized that there were plenty of delicious alternatives that I could eat – putting into practice one of the best-kept nutrition secrets: Don’t focus on what you can’t eat. Focus on what you can eat.

If you focus on the foods that you can’t eat, making healthy choices could be unnecessarily painful. You’ll feel deprived, and by thinking about unhealthy foods – you’ll develop cravings from them. If you think about cheesecake long enough, you’re probably going to get a hankering for some. Don’t mourn over what you can’t eat; rejoice in the foods that you can! Take a glass half-full approach.

Indeed, a boring ice-lolly might not make the cut – but many other refreshing options like frozen smoothies or fruit salad are viable alternatives. And healthy foods can be delicious and satisfying, so put your energy and attention there.

And there you have it – the best-kept nutrition secret ever. EVER!

Focus on what you can eat!

By doing this you’ll start to enjoy losing weight and rewarding yourself in different ways. When you believe in yourself, you radiate a positive energy that people find irresistible. So get the positive vibe. Get rid of the ‘shoulds’ and ‘oughts’ set yourself free to enjoy the moment.

Replace every negative thought with a positive one. Instead of ‘I hate my hips’, try ‘I really like my eyes’

Say thank you to compliments, instead of putting yourself down in response.

Your mission today is to have a good one ;-) Go out, smile and be nice to others. Pay someone a compliment, do something nice for some. Let’s make today ‘National Be Nice Day’. Why? Why not!?

If you really need a reason, do it for me, call it my Birthday present xx

Happy ‘National Be Nice Day’ everybody ;-)