Eat Less: eat what you like and never mind the food snobs

I love eating so I want to share some of my ideas about food and nutrition.

I use The Australian Dietary Guidelines to inform my food decisions so that I get the right balance and amount of nutrition. The key here is that they are guidelines.

Everyone has their own eating preferences, food dislikes and likes and habits. Some people eat for reasons other than nutrition, sometimes these reasons can be self-defeating and other times these reasons are celebratory and life-affirming. Some people choose to eat soley for nutrition.

I like to eat lots of grains and vegies and am very picky what kind of fat I eat. As a child I refused to put margarine or butter on my bread, I still don’t butter my bread or toast and can happily snack on a thick piece of black rye bread just like that, or maybe with a nice cheese.

I know a 30 something year old woman who thrives on grilled crispy bacon and scrambled eggs for breakfast, eats fresh fruit all day and has a small meal in the evening. She’s slim and fit.

A middle aged man I know is happy to eat a large meal mid-morning and not eat again until dinner. He trains hard to put weight on and loses weight when he stops training.

Eating well is about getting the right balance of foods that suit you; eat less of the foods you don’t want and don’t need  and more of the foods that are good for you. To do this you can employ a dietician or nutritionist (ask your GP to refer you, you may be eligible for a reduced rate) or use the Guidelines.

I ask my clients to do a 24 hour recall. We write down absolutely everything they’ve eaten and drunk in the last 24 hours and tally up how many portions of cereals, vegetables, fruit, dairy, meat and extras they’ve had. We then compare this to the Guidelines (4-6 portions of cereals, 5 veg, 2 fruit, 2 dairy, 1 meat and 0-3 extras).  This is also a handy exercise to do whenever you think your nutritional intake is lacking (or excessive!). Give it a go and tell me if you don’t find it quite the eye-opener.

It's easy to eat less as long as you're getting the right nutritional balance for you.

Next post – Exercise more, on ­your terms.