How Never to Diet Again! - what an idea!

Having lost one and a half stone about 18 months ago - and gradually put it on again - although there were several mitigating circumstances, including illness and bad news - it's time to eat more sensibly and return to my youthful sylph-like figure - ha ha!!  
So when this intriguing article appeared in the paper recently I felt I must share the ideas - as well as try them - well, here goes:

• Monitor your habits: try to understand why you're overeating.  For a few weeks keep a food journal, then you can see when you're eating and why.  Stress - boredom - sadness - loneliness perhaps.  Work on relieving these emotions and really progress with your eating habits.
• Don't starve yourself: so many people think that by eating less they will lose weight.  But a lack of food will have a direct impact on your metabolic rate, and if you damage that you'll start gaining weight the second you start eating properly again.  If we're not eating the right foods - in particular protein - we diminish our muscle stores, which is what burns our excess fat during our sleep.  Diets don't actually work as they are not sustainable.
• A proper start: you must have breakfast in the morning.  Your body has fasted all night and skipping breakfast means that your body will start to lay down fat stores because it thinks it's not going to get fed.  It goes into survival mode.  Once you establish a good, regular eating routine you will naturally lose some excess weight, as your body starts to trust you again.  But if you're going from feast to famine your body won't know what on earth is going on.
• Don't deny yourself: Depriving yourself of certain foods makes you more likely to fixate on them and then binge.  By allowing yourself them the mysticism and excitement diminishes.  Obviously, chocolate or cake most days will make a difference, but once or twice a week is fine.
• Keep in varied: look at what most people eat and you'll see they have the same thing for breakfast and the same thing of lunch every day.  Aim for lots of variety, and for food that looks colourful and appealing.  Focus on what you're including in your diet, not what you shouldn't eat.
• The C word: don't be scared of carbohydrates.  Complex carbohydrates such as brown rice and wholegrain bread are very important, as they keep your blood sugar level stable, are great for mood and contain essential minerals.  Eliminating a whole food group means you run the risk of being deficient in minerals.  You don't need to eat huge quantities, just a bit.
• Take your time: you should have 'protected' mealtimes, which means not eating food whilst watching TV, reading or working.  If you don't concentrate on the food you won't feel as if you've been fed.  Take time to really enjoy food.

Like New Year's Resolutions, the above list does seem rather long, so I aim to try and incorporate one idea each week into my permanent eating plan . . .