Healthy eating doesn't have to mean boring

As we have heard time and time again, they key to maintaining a healthy weight is following a healthy diet. Start adding tasty ingredients like these and you’ll be on your way to enjoying healthy, satisfying meals.
- Add some chopped, fresh basil to your favourite pasta sauce.
- Marinate chicken breasts in lemon juice, dried thyme and rosemary.
- Sprinkle oatmeal with apple pie spice for a heartwarming treat.
- Add some fresh, minced ginger to your favourite canned soup to add another depth of flavour.
- Add a splash of vanilla to plain, non-fat yogurt along with some non-calorie sweetener to save on calories from added sugars

Be experimental with food

There are thousands of different foods in the supermarket to choose from. Most fresh food these days, like fruit and vegetables, are available all year round, not just seasonal, so we have a wide variety all of the time. Make your meals colourful, interesting, and nutrient rich by combining all these foods together. If you don’t like a particular food, try it again, taste buds change over time you may like it one day.

Try to snack on foods that you may not eat at main meals, e.g. fruit, fruit bars and yoghurt.

Plan your daily intake to include all the food groups – don’t just leave it to good luck. Try new and interesting foods every day that you have not tried.

How to stop sugar cravings

If you’re craving sugar, here are some ways to tame those cravings.

Eat a bit of what you’re craving, maybe a small cookie or a fun-size chocolate bar.

Go cold turkey, cutting out all simple sugars works for some people, although the initial 48 to 72 hours are tough.

Keep fruit handy for when sugar cravings hit. You’ll get fibre and nutrients along with some sweetness.

Get up and go. When a sugar craving hits, walk away. Take a walk around the block or do something to change the scenery, to take your mind off the food you’re craving.

Waiting too long between meals may set you up to choose sugary, fatty foods that curb your hunger. Instead, eating every three to five hours can help keep blood sugar stable and help you avoid irrational eating behaviour.

Body Matters

You use energy no matter what you are doing and that includes sleeping. Your body uses calories for energy to perform bodily functions such as maintaining your internal temperature, keeping your heart beating and your lungs breathing.

It is important you look at these 4 key health indicators - Talk to your trainer if you need more information or support

Struggling to sleep - Missing sleep causes the body’s metabolism to change and that alone piles on the pounds.

Benefits of water -Try to increase your daily intake to 5 or 6 glasses and see what a difference it can make to you losing weight

Effects of stress - Regular exercise is so important to help alleviate day to day stresses, your health depends on it.

Try to relax - Just imagining that you are hanging out at your favourite beach for a couple of minutes will soothe your nerves and lower your brain waves, pulse and blood pressure.