Isn’t that what we all want? Especially after the holiday season. Fast. Fat. Loss. Why not throw in easy, effortless fat loss? If you read the magazines and look at all the advertising that bombards us in January, from celebrity diets to promises of big fat losses from drinking powders instead of eating meals, you can lose weight fast – BUT, can you keep it off?

Here are lots of tips and ideas for entertaining platters, as well as Christmas gift suggestions for those interested in keeping healthy.

With less than 8 weeks until Christmas and Christmas functions and outings ramping up, a real fear for many people is how to keep off the weight they lost during the year. Who wants to lose flab and then whack it back on again, only to have to lose it again in the New Year?

Studies show that having a high level of blood glucose can be a factor in developing dementia and cancer, as well as having a role in many inflammatory conditions. The sad fact is that way too many Kiwis don’t look after themselves. A poor quality diet, obesity, stress and lack of regular exercise all increase your risk of becoming a Type 2 diabetic, along with the resultant health issues. Are you complacent enough to let it happen to you?

Switching to the low carb, high fat lifestyle recently has been like a dream!! Doing LCHF as a vegetarian/pescatarian has been delicious.

You need to ask yourself that question and be honest with your answer. What is it you are unhappy with and what are you prepared to change in your lifestyle in order to get the result you want.

I’m 15.7kg lighter, with 10kg of that being pure fat, I’ve lost 16cm from my bust, 13cm from my waist and 14cm from my hips, so on the outside I feel great, and I’m probably only half way through my journey!  But it was the inside that worried me the most, well that has improved immensely too – my HBA1C has reduced from 45 (it should be under 41) to a very healthy 34, my liver function has improved and the doctor has said I’ve no longer got hypertension.

I don't believe most people make the changes to their diets that are needed to actually SEE the result of their hard work, i.e. they didn't lose body fat, so they couldn't see their muscles!

You don’t have to be hugely overweight to have too much of the dangerous visceral fat around your organs, in fact many people who appear to be slim on the outside can be ‘fat on the inside’.

Yes, you pretty much know what to eat and hopefully if you have been seeing me you will understand why, but are you eating too much of a good thing? It’s all too easy, especially in winter, to overeat. It’s only natural to seek out more filling food and that’s fine, but portion size does count.

I think it is true that the cooler weather sends us looking for more filling food, so it is good to ensure you have tasty, hot meals prepared. There are new recipes on my website, as well as older ones that help fill you up in winter. Think porridge, soups, casseroles and using the slow cooker so that you come home to yummy meals.

Cooler weather seems to bring more bugs than usual and there are a lot of sore throats and coughs and colds around. Supporting your immune system may help prevent your succumbing to winter ills.
My amazing naturopath and medical herbalist has some tips and a great offer for my clients.

I apply three main criteria when I’m drawing up a nutrition plan with a client. Is it healthy? Will it achieve the desired result? Is it sustainable in the long term? Because I don’t believe that one size fits all, flexibility is required, as is getting to know my clients and figuring out what is sustainable for each of them.

The first few months of a new year seem to contain a fair few holidays, plus of course there is still summer socialising and various get togethers. I would say that the majority of my clients find these occasions a real challenge and it can be quite dispiriting to have been on track with your healthy eating during the week, only to let loose at the weekend and find yourself back at square one. Here are my suggestions to help you keep on track.

Yes, it’s that time of year again, when the supermarket aisles are groaning with an indecent amount of overpriced chocolate. Here are my suggestions to get you through Easter and the school holidays without falling off the wagon.

At a time, when as a nation we are getting fatter and unhealthier, we need to seriously be looking at what we are eating and what we are giving our kids, the next generation, to eat.

Lots of people gain weight over the holiday period when increased food variety and the social environment contributes to overeating. It's too easy to say that you'll start next Monday, when the kids go back to school....

I was diagnosed with Grade 2 breast cancer in both breasts and had a double mastectomy.  Three months later, I was advised the cancer had spread to my bones, so I now have what is called metastatic breast cancer, otherwise commonly known as stage 4, incurable or terminal cancer. One day I will die from it.

It’s not only the emotional and social implications of carrying too much fat, it is the increasing health risks that come with it. With around 50-60% of New Zealand’s population now officially classified as overweight or obese, that has huge ramifications

Dr Fung is a nephrologist (kidney specialist) who was seeing a lot of Type 2 diabetics who were needing dialysis. He used to give out the time worn advice of ‘eat less and move more’ so his patients would lose weight. But, many of them weren’t and he came to the conclusion that there must be more to the weight loss equation.