“Let food be thy medicine and let medicine be thy food.”

-Hippocrates

This evening was the first class of a two month weight management program that I teach. It’s a series of classes that I always look forward to because I genuinely love to be a part of individuals’  lives as they become healthier. It’ve motivating and centered on sustainable changes. Most participants are either referred by their physician out of medical necessity or have tried every diet and been unable to succeed.

In the first class, I don’t even say the word “calorie” and I don’t talk about a “diet.” We start out talking about strategies to improve health, create sustained energy throughout the day, and ways to boost metabolism. For the next week, participants are instructed to think about how they feel before and after each meal…and to make sure they are eating at least 3 meals per day. Do you eat when you are not hungry? Do you eat in response to a certain emotion? These are a few of the questions that they must answer to begin their journey towards healthier living.

Here is a quick list of some of the simple strategies we discuss:

• Eat at least 3 meals per day. Do not skip meals.
• Eat a breakfast meal within 1 1/5 hour of waking. (Combine high fiber food with a low fat protein)
• If you eat cereal at breakfast, choose a cereal with at least 5 grams of dietary fiber per serving.
• Do not let yourself get too hungry…or too full. Start paying attention to your level of satiety (fullness) after meals.
• Set 1-2 realistic, measurable goals for the upcoming week to begin starting the next day.

See if these 5 steps can also make a difference for you this week, I’d love to hear about your great results!