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New Year, New Habits - Part 2
by Angie Weston

Here are some easy ways to break bad eating habits that will also:

• Burn fat
• Boost your moods
• Lose weight and keep it off

Introduction

People these days are fed up of being told how they should eat to stay healthy, we all know what is good and bad for us and that too much junk foods, alcohol and over eating will eventually put us in hospital but we don't change our ways. We don't want to be told what to eat, we want to know why it's not good for us so we can understand and change it. Bad habits have stopped us from having our dream bodies and living healthy lives, here are some reasons why to kick these bad habits to the curb and ways to replace them with good ones.

Eat often but smaller meals

One of the worst eating habits we have is to eat only 1 or 2 huge meals in the day expecting it to be enough, but a lengthy time without food will only give you a bad mood and a drop in your blood sugars which will lead to snacking and eventually raiding the fridge. I was an expert on this would end up eating for Africa! Here are some reasons why eating often but smaller is better.

-A great reason to eat smaller but regular is that it helps to speed up your metabolism (which is the rate your body burns fat) and it suppresses your appetite. It also keeps your energy high and regulates your energy levels throughout the day, which means you never feel hungry enough to cheat or to over indulge. Nutritionists and personal trainers recommend to eat every 2-3 hours ( I follow  this too) and if you're out and about, cook and pack some food to take with you so you don't get tempted to cheat.

-Snacking between meals is a bad habit to have, you just end up eating all day! To get this habit under control train your body and mind  when to eat, make it like clock work and don't eat until your next meal is due. Remember, you will not die if you don't eat within the next ½ hour.

-To eat regular you have to let your stomach be accustomed to smaller meals. Start by reducing the amount each week slowly so your body doesn't go into shock and convince you it's starving and to pig out. It's just re-programming your mind and changing old habits.

-Keep your meal size slightly bigger than one of your hands, that's usually enough for one sitting (heath experts suggest this amount too) Each meal try to have 50% protein, 40% carbohydrates: simple or
complex (simple; veg, lentils, beans. Complex; potatoes, pasta, rice etc.) and 10% healthy fats (from fish, avocado, nuts etc.) This is a well balanced meal and will give your body the vitamins and minerals it needs fit and fight off sickness. 

-Smaller meals helps your digestive system work the way it was designed to and in harmony with the rest of your body too. You will feel a lot lighter and you will be better balanced chemically and emotionally which means a happier and healthier you.      

- So start to downsize your meals, eat often and see the benefits.

Why listen to everyone?

There are so many different kinds of diets out there, everyday a new one comes out promising everything from a perfect body to getting a new life in 7days, the fitness industry is saturated with these quick fix's diets and most of them are fads. People try a new diet every week hoping to bet the battle of the bulges but we end up either fainting or forgetting where we live due to lack of food and get totally confused from too much choice and end up giving in and eating everything in sight.

To get the whole diet thing down to perfection is simple, stop listening to everyone! The biggest mistake we make everyday is to listen and follow everything people say for us to do. From the way we think, dress, talk to what we eat is mostly from other people's ideas and not ourselves, no wonder why we throw in the towel so quickly. For many years I did this and it messed me up to where I didn't know if I was coming or going, it finally took me 2 years to get my meals right. I know the majority of people mean well but most people don't have a clue about what they are talking about or have little REAL knowledge about it. It's not everyone's advice you can take so be careful who you ask, even doctors and professional health experts get it wrong sometimes. Everyone is built differently and what works for one person might not work for you. Try not to ask too many people too many questions, Rome wasn't built in a day so take your time in experimenting with different kinds of foods until you find what works for you. Choose a healthy eating plan that you can stick to, not a diet (diets only last for a week) and don't change it.     

Whenever I give advise it's always a guideline, nothing is set in stone, it's all through trial and error. It takes a lot of professional bodybuilders, and athlete's years to know which foods work for them but once you get it right that's 90% of the battle won. It's the foods that you eat that are going to make or break you on getting and maintaining the body of your dreams. So you're not alone on this one, even us pro's have to go through it.

Stick to your guns and don't let anyone change your mind and remember if you don't get it right first time the world isn't going to end, happy dieting !

Cut out the dairy

Since we have been children we have been taught from our parents and teachers that we must drink milk and eat dairy products to grow strong bones and healthy teeth but as we become adults we still continue to drink milk. Why? Because we have been told by the dairy and food industry to think milk is the best form of calcium and that our bodies need it but have you ever seen an adult cow sucking from an others cow teat? No, only calves do, or an adult ape drinking off a nursing ape? Certainly not, only their babies do. This is because only infants (humans and animals) are supposed to be drinking its mothers milk until they are weaned off it, the adult body is not designed to continue to have milk after we have been weaned off , it's not nature and you'll never see a grown man breast-feeding off a nursing mother (unless if you're weird) and if you did I guarantee you WOULD be arrested immediately and put into therapy!
 
We have been misinformed and misguided for years about dairy products, but the truth is that the human body doesn't produce the enzymes to break down lactose (which is in milk) only infants do.

Here are some reasons to give up milk:

-Cows have 4 stomachs and its milk is only designed for its calves. Humans have 1 stomach and cannot digest cows milk and when we drink it, it builds up mucus blocking our arteries. Milk also contains a very powerful protein called casein, which is one of the strongest glue like substances ever and it sticks to the walls of our intestines and stomach. Most foods these days have lactose (milk) in them, from cooked meats, gravies, all pastries, cakes & cookies to even most medications. That's why a lot of people suffer from digestive problems, headaches, asthma, body rashes, heart diseases and other illness because we are intolerant to milk.   

-The body produces it's own natural calcium, which is stored in our bones and teeth. We use calcium to neutralize acid that's in some natural foods, but most foods that we eat are not natural and are high in acid like fizzy drinks, coffee & tea, most fast foods, canned foods, preserved foods and including cow's milk are all high in acid. So every time you drink a milk shake or eat a frozen meal you're taking the calcium from your bones and teeth. This is why people get osteoporosis not because of not enough milk but too much of it and too much junk foods that are high in acid, no wonder why we have weak bones and are losing our teeth.

So why do we keep feeding our bodies what it doesn't need? Because no one has told us and we see everyone else doing it .We follow advise from people who we trust and look up to like doctors and heath experts but even they get it wrong sometimes. If we look at animals and follow how they eat, we would be a lot healthier.

After I found out the truth about dairy products I cut them out totally, I've been dairy free for nearly 4 years now and never felt better even medication I avoid and I stick to natural remedies. If you know something is bad for you why keep doing it? Even if it's just a little it will soon all add up. Your body is a temple and if you put junk in it you are a walking junkyard.

-Instead try and go for dairy free foods, there is a big range these days and you can still have your favourite goodies like cakes, cookies, sauces, bread, yoghurts, chocolate, cheese and other tasty foods. Go for Soya or rice milk, which also has protein in it. Water is high in calcium so get as much of this good stuff in you as you can and if you want added calcium in your body you can take calcium tablets as supplements from heath food stores. So be good to yourself and give what your body needs…It will thank you for it and you might even live till your 100!