Fad Diets, we go through them like anything. From one to another with a binge break in the middle where we make excuses and put on the pounds we just lost. The diet industry makes thirty billion dollars yearly on people looking for a weight loss programme. That’s right, a whopping Thirty Billion on people like you and me, insecure and looking for that magic cure.

So why do we let them make money on our insecurities? Do you want the harsh truth? Laziness.

Let me explain, every time we pick up that new diet book we do it because it promises to be an easy way to lose those excess pounds. We wouldn’t pick it up, let alone follow it for a few weeks if it said “This is the hardest, longest most monotonous thing you will ever do.” No! We don’t want to work hard. We want to take a pill that will make us slim quickly without having to change our routine or life style at all. Unfortunately you can’t, so stop letting this industry make money from your insecurities and selling you lies.

You know deep inside that you’re not going to stick to that new diet and you know it’s not going to work, deep down you know the truth. I watched my mum do it and followed in her footsteps for years. I did the Atkins Diet, The Beverly hills diet, Weight watchers, No carb, Slimmers World, the fast diet, the cabbage diet, the list is endless. The truth is when you approach a diet like this you put pressure on yourself to stick to it, this unnecessary stress makes you want to eat. The more you tell yourself you can’t have something the more you want it, and what do we turn to when times are hard? Bad food!

So what should you do? If you really want to lose weight for yourself, not for anyone else; not for your boyfriend; not for that guy you fancy; not because you should to fit in or look like those girls in magazines; not to conform to whatever is considered beautiful at that time. If you want to do it for you, to be healthy , to feel better in your own skin or for whatever reason then it’s simple:

Eat Healthy and excersize.

That is it ladies, seriously, it’s not easy, but it works. All you have to do is make sure you stay away from bad foods that are high in fats and sugars, I’m not saying cut them out totally, you can treat yourself every now and then. You should have equal amounts of food from the three main groups, so a third of each:
Protein – Meat, cheese, Milk etc
Fruit and Veg – Fruit, Salad, Vegetables
Carbohydrate – Potatoes, pulses, BROWN pasta, rice, etc

Only eat when you are hungry and make sure you are not over eating. What you should do to begin with is eat slowly and drink water while you eat, when you are full stop. Swap your whites for your browns (carbohydrates), your sweets for fruit, your chips for salad, your pudding for a low calorie hot chocolate.

Get at least an hour of exercise in everyday, this is easy; you can walk to work instead of using public transport or driving; walk up the stairs instead of using elevators or escalators; Squat while your brushing your teeth; sit ups when laying down before sleeping at night; use every opportunity to get that extra bit in. I found the Insanity challenge really gave me a boost to begin with and after the two months I started running to and from work, the weight just fell off and has not come back.

Don’t forget, this is something my best friend told me and it stuck:
“Your weight is a constantly changing thing if you put on a few pounds one week work harder the next. Don’t punish yourself and allow yourself treats once in a while. You are a project that’s ever changing, learning and developing, keep at it and have fun.”