This story on the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-36988065) says that Britons underestimate how many calories they eat/drink.
It also says that if we want to lose weight, we should concentrate more on eating less, instead of exercising more.
Well, as humans, we are generally a bit crap at remembering what we ate and how much. And we are conciously or subconciously very selective about what we actually do remember. I’ve spoken to thousands of people who tell me about every carrot and piece of lettace they had last week, but forgot to mention the cake and bottle of wine they had only yesterday! This is why I recommend people fill out a food diary, like this one you will find by clicking here. Sometimes just the act of writing everything down and looking back at it in the cold light of day is enough to make us change our eating habits and behaviours.
I have written quite a bit on ways to change your diet. My personal favorite (but there are many different ways you can do it) is the “10 simple rules for healthy eating”. Find out about them by clicking here.
And what do I say about putting less emphesis on exercise to lose weight? Me, who scrapes a living putting people through exercise?
Well, I 100% agree! I’ve been saying it for years now. Exercise is a pretty crappy way to lose weight. People who “exercise to burn calories” are flogging a dead horse to no-where-land! Don’t do it!
If you ever find yourself saying “I’m going to do this exercise because it burns more calories”…do us both a favour and slap yourself accross the head.
There are litterally hundreds of excellent reasons to exercise. Being fit and strong:
- Helps you live longer.
- Helps you live a better quality of life.
- Replaces most of those drugs you get from your doctor each week.
- Helps you sleep better.
- Reduces those niggling chronic aches and pains you keep feeling.
- Means you are less likely to break bones, pull muscles or tweak your back.
- Lets you do more exciting things in your spare time and on holiday.
- Lets you experience more of this wonderful world we live in.
- Makes you look better in front of the opposite sex.
The list goes on and on and on! But despite all this…exercise is still a pretty crap way to lose weight. Many people come to me asking what is the best exercise to lose weight. My answer would be the Shake and Push…
If you are not feeling hungry and someone offers you some crappy food, you shake your head and push it away.