Dietitian reveals the exact reasons your health kicks fail

A fitness fanatic has revealed exactly why people ‘fall off the bandwagon’ when it comes to reaching health goals and what they can do to succeed.

Nutritionist Amelia Phillips, 43, says when it comes to weight loss most people make their lives more difficult instead of choosing a plan which improves their lifestyle.

The mum-of-four told FEMAIL people shouldn’t add to their workload when trying to meet fitness goals.

‘Choose a plan that makes things easier. For example switch out one meal per day for a healthy ‘mini-meal’ be it a shake, or use a portion controlled meal delivery service or double cook and batch meals,’ she said.

‘These solutions make life easier by reducing your cooking effort and teaching you about correct portion sizes, whilst still ensuring you get the nutrients you need.’

And the same goes for working out, according to the exercise scientist, who says the more enjoyable and ‘manageable’ your program the more likely you are to stick to it.

‘For example if you’re social set up a walking or jogging group with some friends,’ she said. 

Mrs Phillips said it is important not to think of it as ‘failing’ when you don’t stick to your health plan as well as you had hoped to.

‘We all dip in and out of habits and activities, it’s totally normal. In fact it’s good for your body to have times of hard work and times of rest,’ she said. 

‘However if you want to reach some great goals, pick the one element of your diet you think is holding you back and focus on a solution for that.’

This could be eating too much takeout which is often laden with salt and sugar, eating high-calorie, low-nutritional-value food during the 3pm slump, drinking too much alcohol and eating large portion sizes.

‘Pick the one element that would make the biggest difference and come up with your plan to combat that one element,’ she said.

She suggests a protein shake over chocolate for sweet tooth’s and popcorn over chips for savoury-snackers when they start crashing mid-afternoon.

She also suggest watching after-dinner treats and switching for healthier options including frozen yoghurt for ice cream lovers and a hot chocolate instead of nibbling on a block.  

The busy mum says anyone who has never failed a health goal ‘isn’t aiming high enough’.

She also says from the age of 30 it is almost impossible to ‘out-train’ a poor diet. 

‘Diet is everything,’ she said.

For people looking to lose weight Mrs Phillips says it is important to switch to a sustainable eating plan.

‘Around 0.5kg-1kg per week is the magic number and you can most definitely do that in a sustainable way,’ she said.

‘The greater the deficit, the faster the weight loss. However the magic trick here is not to embark on a plan that is too extreme, that’s when you cannot sustain it and you slip into yoyo dieting which is not healthy over time.’

‘Pick an approach that fits in with your life, your culture, where food continues to be enjoyed and social.’

She recommend people focus on mindfulness, exercise, diet and sleep for best results when trying to lose weight and improve their health.