The author of French Women Don’t Get Fat, Mireille Guiliano, ‘shares her time-tested advice to anyone wanting to shed excess kilograms without resorting to drastic dieting.
Drink water
The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning is to have one or two big glasses of water. Most people dont drink enough water. Each of us has to find what the correct amount of water is for me, I know its about two litres of water a day and when I travel or exercise, much more.
Get moving
I have my water and then I do some movement, whether its 20 minutes of yoga, like I did this morning, or going for a walk.
She also advocates incidental exercise such as walking to work.
Always eat breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because that sets you up for the day. I eat my magical breakfast which is really very easy to make and its very complete because it has yoghurt, a teaspoon of flax oil, two tablespoons of lemon juice, a teaspoon of honey and then some unsweetened cereal.
I put oatmeal in it and then some walnuts.
I mix all this. It takes me a few minutes.
Sit while eating
I sit down very quietly and eat my breakfast with a cup of coffee, and that keeps me in great shape until one, two oclock.
Eat natural food, moderately
Your body needs this kind of complete food. There are all these trends of not eating carbs or not eating this or that, or lite this or that. But if you eat good, natural food in small portions, in moderation, you shouldnt have any problem.
Cook your own food
Cooking helps you control what you put into your body. Most of the prepared food people eat are loaded with salt and sugar and that makes you hungrier and gets you fat. So when you eat your vegetables and [then eat] cheese or a piece of fish or a little piece of meat and then a piece of fruit, you dont have any problems.
Spoil yourself, but not too much
I have a piece of chocolate or a glass of wine or some dessert, but in moderation. All my life, after getting fat and going back to my regular shape, Ive applied that method and its really a wonderful way to stay healthy. And if Im healthy the way I am now, its because of that.
Be grateful
To me, life is a gift and every day I try to see how lucky I am to be alive, especially at my age when I see many of my friends are gone or many are unhealthy. To have your health is the most important thing. Its not money. Its not your career. If you dont have your health, theres not much left out there because you are physically unhappy and psychologically unhappy, and you are probably making a lot of people around you unhappy. Its a responsibility of everyone to try to lead a healthy life, and it starts with eating well.
News Store Help
Quick Search | Advanced Search | Browse Archives Printer friendly version Print Entire Page
Sun-Herald, French revolution, Linda McSweeney
Date: 20/10/2013