Now energy is something we all want, it’s something we all complain about. How many times have you skipped the things that you were going to do because you were too tired and run down? Now I would postulate that it’s not always a lack of sleep that’s making you tired. Of course a lack of sleep is always going to play a role in feeling tired, but what if you got a good night’s sleep yet still feel tired? It then must be something else right?

Enter the role of metabolic typing. Now although metabolic ends up being a fairly specific process, the underlying theme is simple. Find out your metabolic type and you find out what foods your body is best suited for, thus creating and maximising your energy production. And we would all love a bit more energy. Ever ate lunch and then at 3pm felt the pull towards the coffee machine? Well it is likely that your lunch wasn’t sufficient to provide you with good energy. This is where knowing your metabolic type can be invaluable. It’s no magical coincidence that you are tired at 3pm every afternoon, there is a reason, it’s your inadequate lunch.

Looking at the lunch example, which is often very high in carbohydrate, we can almost self diagnose part of the issue. The next time you have lunch have less carbohydrate, so let’s say you have a sandwich, only have one round of sandwiches instead of two but make the filling huge, so there is lots of protein content and a bit more fat.

Metabolic typing will show you what ratio of protein, fat and carbohydrates is ideal for you, so if the new sandwich fares you better in terms of energy it would indicate that your body is more inclined to a higher protein and fat intake rather than a high carbohydrate intake, a diet which is advocated by many health and nutrition programs.

Just because a food is healthy it doesn’t mean that it should give us lots of energy. A food still has to stimulate certain processes in our energy system, get that fine balance wrong and you are going to be left tired. Get it right and feel energised and it is likely you are veering close to your metabolic type.

There is a sweet spot when it comes to energy production, you just have to either find it via trial and error, or take the test and take out the guess work. Once you know this sweet spot you are then able to alter the ratios in and around exercise, after all the proportions of certain foods that are needed will change as a result of exercise. This is because the body has different fuel demands, always taking a lean towards more carbohydrate based foods, especially after your workout. Get this wrong and again you may find yourself feeling even more tired as a result of the exercise.

Get it right and you should feel super energised as a results of the exercise induced endorphin release. So nail your metabolic type and nail how you feel every hour of the day, every day of the week,

Although metabolic typing has gained in popularity over the years, it is still a relatively unheard of system for identifying exactly what an individual needs when it comes to their diet. The ultimate advantage of metabolic typing is its identification of how much carbohydrate, protein and fat any individual should be eating to stimulate weight loss, and improvements in their health.

After all we are all different, and this means that we all need to eat differently. Me sitting here writing this now are likely to need a different diet to you sitting there reading this. We are all individuals, we all need to eat individually, and that is where the role of metabolic typing comes in. Bio-individuality is key in any diet process.

A classic example of metabolic typing at work is someone who thinks they have a balanced diet. They eat well, get plenty of whole grains, eat moderate amounts of fruits, vegetables and some animal protein, BUT the weight loss is still not happening. It could be that this individual, for their metabolic type, are not eating enough animal proteins and fat, and that simply cutting back on all the carbohydrates such as whole grains and replacing them with more animal protein sources will effect the balance enough to elicit weight loss. It could be as simple as that.

Losing weight shouldn't be too hard, indeed there may be some blocking factors that need to be resolved, issues that have been present with someones diet and health for some time, such as poor gut function. BUT what occurs with metabolic typing is much of the guess work is removed with the process, and ultimately the end goal is achieved a lot quicker. If we have a baseline to operate from straight away then the fine tuning process is a lot quicker. This is where metabolic typing can speed up the weight loss process and get results far quicker.

Health supplements are everywhere, on the high street, in the supermarket and on the internet. It is usually a products clever marketing tapping into your emotional psyche that forces you to click pay from an underlying desire to be slimmer, healthier and more energised. But how many of these products out on the market today actually work functionally as a health food and are not just hype in a bottle.

Many products have come and gone with promises up to the sky of what they will do for your health. Having a think I think the Acai berry is currently a perfect example of this. It seems to be the number one product doing the rounds on the internet and has millions of gullible Americans and other nations snapping at its heels for its proposed health benefits. Just to warn you now, the berry will not inherently help you lose weight, it is the other ingredients that accompany it such as hydroxyl type acids that aid weight loss.

So what constitutes a health food or supplement? Well for starters it should benefit your health, obviously, but it should also not post any long term health issue, like the acai berry product would with some of its acid base ingredients. Any product that elicits a short term effect on the body will be bad in the long term as there will be an inherent long term reaction as a result of the short term adaptation (usually weight loss).

Such health supplements I would say are beneficial are supplements such as fish oils, aloe vera, multi-vitamins, vitamins E, C & D, pro biotics, enzymes and green food products. But these supplements will still be bad or will simply not work if you buy the cheapest. They are usually the cheapest because the active ingredients are next to nothing. Some supplements that have been reviewed have found between 0.6% - 99% of the active ingredients, that’s a huge margin for error. Get a cheap supplement and although cheap it may not even work at all.

So it is important to use some common sense. Don’t buy in to heavy marketing claims, don’t buy in to any wonder miracles as nothing, I repeat nothing is an excuse for a poor diet. Many supplements are sold on the basis that they will be the answer people are looking for when it comes to their poor weight loss or ill health troubles. Supplements are not the answer, all they do is supplement, they cannot make up for poor food and lifestyle choices. Stick to what works, and most importantly make sure your diet is rich in all the essential ingredients before you look to supplement with specifics.

Porridge is a classic breakfast, warming and hearty it is filling many of the nations stomachs every morning. But I have a problem with it for many reasons, but this problem can easily be remedied.

My first issue is it's huge carbohydrate content, this can vary depending on the size of the bowl from 60-200g of carbohydrates. Now although it has a fairly low G.I. this is not remedied well when it is just cooked with skimmed milk which is low in fat and protein, two important elements that slow down digestion. For a breakfast so high in carbohydrates we ideally want plenty of good fats and protein to slow down it's digestion and aid in a slow and steady energy release.

A great way to cook porridge instead is to use whole milk with a few added nuts or seeds or cook it with coconut milk or coconut block (very cheap that is easily made into the milk by adding water or milk), both options providing some good essential fats that will aid it's positive effect on your blood sugar level. It is also a bit of a problem when trying to lose weight as such a high amount of starchy carbohydrates could more than likely get stored as fat if the individual is quite sedentary or does not handle high carbohydrate foods very well (typical with people with high % of back and abdominal fat).

Gluten is also an issue here. If you are sensitive to gluten in any way then porridge should be off the menu unless your oats are certified gluten free. Porridge is not meant to contain gluten but due to extensive cross contamination in our food networks and processing methods it is no longer gluten free unless it has been certified. Although many think a little gluten won't do too much harm it will, it will create a constant environment of inflammation in the gut and hold on to fat and water in many tissues.

So take home points, assess you tolerance to gluten and high carbohydrate based foods, add some good fats and protein to your porridge, and above all if porridge can't be on the menu for you then there are plenty of other options such as a Spanish omelette, a great breakfast option.

The metabolic syndrome is highly prevalent; it’s in the elderly, the middle aged and now children. It’s just about the scariest development of the modern world as we continue to abuse the ease of convenience foods and inactivity as we continually take our health for granted. The metabolic syndrome is a multifaceted clustering of cardiovascular disease risk factors that have developed as a result of our modern way of living. The metabolic syndrome is composed of:

- Obesity
- Insulin resistance
- Dyslipidemia
- Hypertension
- Chronic inflammation

Although many of the statistics can seem misleading it seems the estimated figure for the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is 25% for individuals 20-40 years of age and 40% for 40+ year olds. Data is limited for younger populations (below 20) but estimates would indicate around 20%. Now for me this is a horrific statistic, in that 20% of our children have multiple cardio vascular disease risk factors at such a young age. How an earth does this set them up for adult life?

Now although the government are doing a certain amount to educate everyone of the importance of diet and exercise on health, the buck needs to fall with parents. In past times children learnt everything from the parents, from how to sow a field, how to cook, how to repair clothes to how to lace your shoes. But how many parents take pride in teaching their kids the most beneficial things in life?

I would personally take pride in educating my child. I know that my child’s school life will teach him many things, but it will not teach him the practical and tangible things that will hold him in good stead growing up. The things that will teach them how to look after and nourish their own health in to old age. These will also be the skills again that he will pass down to his children, but this passing of the most valuable information know to our healthy existence seems to have stopped. It would not surprise me if most mums gained their nutritional knowledge from adverts, hello magazine and weight watchers online.

The majority of the metabolic syndromes causes come from eating the modern diet. The diet that kept our grandparents healthy is no longer consumed, not even remotely close. This week the BBC published a program on the rise of breakfast cereal, and that its rise to fame was only due to its huge marketing and advertising budgets, it wasn’t built on its superior health profile; otherwise we might all be healthier people.

Cereal is not a healthy food, and nor are many of the foods that we consider healthy today. And many of these foods are the foods that are contributing to the high carbohydrate, low fat diet that we gorge on today. Such a diet long term destabilises blood sugar levels, hormones, weight and health. Never in our history have we consumed such a diet that is so processed and devoid of nutrition. So the answer, look to your roots for optimal health and don’t let you or your family be another metabolic syndrome statistic.

Sleep is understandably important, but are you fully aware of all the things that it impacts? Such as weight loss, hormones, metabolism, health overall, and are you aware of what you can do to improve your chances of a better nights sleep?

Sleep in an nutshell balances and reconfigures. It repairs, rebalances and rebuilds, so getting enough quality sleep is paramount. We are all aware that a bad nights sleep can make us tired the next day, especially accompanied with poor diet choices, but what else is it effecting? The key aspect when it comes to weight loss and well-being is it's effect on hormones. Hormones control every function in the body from you getting up and going to feeling energised. Not getting enough sleep will elevate day long cortisol levels, which if chronically elevated causes weight gain. So what strategies can you put in place to get better sleep?

Relaxation:

Now when I say relaxation I mean at a specific time of the day, and this is the 40-60 minutes leading up to bedtime. Many people will watch TV or be on their computer right up until bedtime and wonder why they can't sleep. This is due to sympathetic nervous system (SNS)stiumulation, which stimulates get up and go hormones. It basicaly stimulates the body and brain. Best practice would be to spend the time leading up to bed time reading, stretching, talking with a friend or listening to some relaxing music. Indeed this might no be as cool as playing playstation all evening but your body will thank you no end for it.

Caffeine:

This is another big offender. Although many people do not drink caffeine right before bed time they still have had it a few hours before such as with dinner. Caffeine has a half life of 6 hours, which means it is still rummaging around in the blood stream for many hours after consumption. Caffeine elevates many of the get up and go hormones, again stimulating the wrong hormones before bed time.

Again eating a diet that is balanced to your energy requirements and metabolic type will effect normal sleep patterns by keeping the body in balance, but that's a debate for another snowy day.

There are things that you should always have in the kitchen. One to make your life easier when it comes to preparing meals and secondly to enable the meals you are going to cook to be super tasty and healthy. Hence why one of my favorite documents is "building the kitchen" as it enables and teaches you so much.

Now these 3 foods are staples in my cupboard. They enable me to cook very quickly, conveniently and healthily. I will list the food, what it can be used for and why it's healthy. Here goes...

Curry pastes:

Now in my cupboard there is a big selection, from vindaloo to korma. This is simply because it caters for my tastes whatever my culinary craving is, gives me flexibility, and there so cheap why not have a handful of choice. I use curry pastes to make curry, one jar will cook around 4 people curry or 4 individual curries when mixed with coconut block or milk. I will also use it alongside egg white and salt n pepper to marinate chicken breast, leg, thigh or drumstick. Mix it all over the chicken and leave in the fridge covered overnight and you have a simply amazing dish to cook whenever convenient. Spices are very beneficial to health, with spices such as tumeric great as an anti-inflammatory aid. The fats in the paste will lend itself to a lean meat and add more balance to the meal. Kitchen essential number 1.

Coconut block:

Coconut block is great to break up and put in curries to make coconut milk, but also great for porridge instead of milk. Many would be better off without milk and a porridge solution to this is using coconut block and water to make your morning pick me up. The coconut is loaded with good medium chain triglyceride fats which are anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial. It also tastes really good. Kitchen essential number 2.

Dark chocolate:

Now many might be thinking, "What chocolate in a healthy man's cupboard?". But truth is high cocoa % chocolate is really good for you, packing oodles of bitter anti-oxidants. This dark chocolate can accompany any lean meal that needs some added fat to it, and what better way to finish off a meal with a few squares of chocolate. It can also be mixed into your porridge to make it chocolate flavoured and add an extra nutritional punch. It is mainly fat and carbohydrate based so make sure the lean protein content it is accompanying is covered for. Otherwise it as lovely snack with a organic filter coffee. Enjoy kitchen essential number 3.

This smoothie recipe is one for the mixed and carb metabolic types depending on the amount of whey protein used and a few less berries for the mixed type. Could also add a little cottage cheese for the mixed type, would definitely add for a protein type with less berries again and definitely ass some fats.

The important thing to remember is that as a whole this smoothie is not going to be appropriate for the protein metabolic type. It will contain too many carbohydrates for good energy with a distinct lack of fats. This smoothie is ideal for the mixed and carbohydrate metabolic types who handle fruit well with limited amounts of fat. Remember anything might sound healthy upon initial inspection, but if it doesn't contain the right ratio's of fats, carbohydrate and protein you will not experience good energy and continued weight loss and weight maintenance as a result. Enjoy...

Serves: 1

Preparation time: 2 mins

Ingredients:


- 1 large scoop of vanilla whey powder
- 1 extra scoop for mixed types
- 1 cup (1/2 for mixed)) frozen or fresh strawberries
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh blackberries
- 1/2 cup frozen or fresh blueberries
- 1/2 cup of whole plain yogurt
- Extra 1/2 cup for mixed types
- Little ice if used fresh berries
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup of water for consistency

Directions:


Little honey if required for little sweet edge but the berries might be enough

Blend all together in the blender for a good 30 seconds adding as much water as desired for consistency.

A crazy classic from the oriental, beware of peanuts if you have an allergy. Ratios of chicken can be manipulated for desired ratios for your metabolic type. Really tasty, really simple.

Serves: 2-3 depending on ratios

Preparation time: 10-15 minutes

Cooking time: 10-15 mins

Ingredients:

50g dried vermicelli noodles
¼ savoy cabbage finely shredded
1 carrot finely chopped
½ cucumber finely chopped
juice of one lime
100g crunchy peanut butter
3 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
3-4 pre cooked chicken breasts depending on desired ratios
1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
1 tsp Chinese vinegar (only if you have, other vinegar is good to use)
2 tbsp sesame oil (if you don’t have worth buying as good for light cooking)
3 finely sliced spring onions

Directions:

Bring some salted water to the boil, boil noodles for 2 minutes or as packet suggests. Drain. Add the cabbage, carrot, cucumber and lime juice to the noodles.

In a separate saucepan warm the peanut butter with the soy sauce, chilli sauce, vinegar and sesame oil and whisk to a pouring consistency. If necessary add a little water or oil, once heated and right consistency set aside.

Shred the chicken breasts and add to the noodle mixture. Serve in bowls and pour over the peanut sauce.

So many of us don't have a great deal of time to work out. But then what if we didn't aim to get an hours session in a day? What if we turned this idea on it's head completely and what if I said you will probably lose more weight and feel better for it?

Well what if we aimed for 3-6 sessions of 5 or 10 minutes exercise a day? How easy do you think that would be to fit into your schedule? An approach like this will boost your metabolism all day meaning you will burn more calories leading to more weight loss, and it will keep endorphin release high throughout the day giving you better energy and a sense of increased well being. So how would you structure such a program? Here are several ways of get short bursts of exercise into your daily routine:

1. A quick brisk walk for 10 minutes before breakfast

2. 10-20 sets of sprints up and down your stairs before breakfast

3. 10 minutes of dynamic stretching with 100 star jumps before breakfast

4. 15 minute jog before you go for your lunch break

5. Find a tall building on your lunch break and go up and down the stairs for 10-15 minutes

6. Find somewhere to do a circuit of star jumps, burpees, press ups and running on the spot, do this for however long your feeling fit

7. Walk the dog or someone else's dog in the evening

8. Carry the wash basket from your washing machine to the other end of your house 10 times

9. If you have a child pick the child up and down into the air 10 times, like doing a heavy bend and reach exercise

10. Jump on and off the bottom step of your stairs for 1 minute, keep repeating. Can also print on and off the step as well

11. Do some bodyweight exercises in your home in the evening

12. Play about on a swiss ball for 10 minutes doing various stability exercises

Now a lot of these ideas may seem mad, but these same movements are functional and burn considerable amounts of calories throughout the day. Short burst of intense exercise are great for weight loss, think of Usain Bolt, he's ripped and he only runs for 10 seconds. So adopt a few of these crazy fitness ideas and boost your weight loss efforts and day long energy.

The ratio that you eat foods is essential. It will stabilise blood sugar levels, stimulate weight loss, weight maintenance, weight gain, hormonal stability and provide optimal energy. Many will tout the benefits of "energy" foods, but it is rare a food provides good energy by itself.

A singular food, whether a fat, a carbohydrate or a protein will only stimulate certain energy systems and functions. To get good energy, which is a sign as to whether you are eating right, is down to eating the right ratio of foods. This is the same for when you are trying to lose weight. Without the right balance between foods you will make it a lot harder to lose weight unless you eat just protein and fat and go into a fat burning state.

This principal, the principal of finding the right ratio of protein, fat and carbohydrate is, for me, the key essence of metabolic typing. Metabolic typing focuses on finding out what you could call "your ideal fuel mix". Finding this mix will enable you to stimulate all the appropriate energy systems and effectively burn fat as fuel as well as carbohydrate. After all you need to burn fat if you are looking to lose weight, and this is the essence of metabolic typing.

But finding this "ideal food mix" needs to be done at every meal. Many people have a well balanced meal at dinner, a meal they have time to prepare. But breakfast and sometimes lunch are the meals that tend to suffer from sub optimal food choices for weight loss and energy requirements due to imposed time restrictions. A bowl of cereal for breakfast and a sandwich for lunch will not provide you with a balanced supply of energy, these foods are not slow releasing unless accompanied with adequate protein and fat. These foods are also great for gaining weight unless you handle starchy carbohydrates well, which tend to be the naturally thin types.

So if you suffer with energy issues at any point in the day, are struggling to lose weight or generally feel your health could be better you could really benefit from finding out your metabolic type. But because metabolic typing focuses on ratios of fat, carbs and protein start playing around with the ratios that you are eating and see whether you notice a difference in your energy.

There are many foods that are hailed as the new superfood, or just thought to be good for health in general. Here I'm going to look at 5 foods that are commonly found in the house hold that are do more harm than good.

Clever marketing is used by companies everywhere, regardless as to whether the claims are true or not. Without this clever marketing people would never believe that a product will help them lose weight, improve their health, increase their energy or reduce some apparent symptom. Many products are sold on emotion, if a marketing strategy pulls on your heart strings then 100% guaranteed your hooked and will buy just to try.

Corn Flakes:

Now a low G.I. breakfast is even recommended by the government, and corn flakes is not one of these breakfasts, in fact many breakfast cereals are useless. Corn flakes have a higher glycemic index and glycemic load than white gread or sugar, that means it's in and out of your body within a very short time and will only provide very limited and short term energy. It will also over stimulate insulin and leave you hungry shortly after. The only thing you might get some of is a few B vitamins, but these are so abundant in many foods that in no way can you count this as a benefit to corn flakes as a product or beneficial food source.

Muller Rice:

Women seem to love these as a snack or as an option as a pudding, as if it's almost a "good" treat as it's not as bad as some of the other things you could have. Either way it's just creamy white rice, high on the glycemic index rating. Low in nutrition and high in lots of added extras to make it taste good. This is due to the lack of fat in the product as Muller use low fat dairy to make it. It also lacks anything beneficial to the body on many levels. Again it elevates circulating blood sugar and insulin unnecessarily.

Fruit salad:

Now fruit is healthy right? Yes it is, it's full of vitamins, mineral and fibre, but it can have it's drawbacks if you are not aware of it's cons. Fructose, the sugar in fruit, is a very fast releasing sugar that will elevate the blood sugar level very quickly. Fructose is also the sugar molecule that stimulates fat storage more than any other sugar molecule. So a fruit salad is not a good breakfast option on it's own. Add a big dollop of whole natural yoghurt, some nuts and seeds and we are much closer to a meal that will slow the release of all the good nutrients that fruit provides. Maximum of two fruit portions a day I would recommend for weight loss.

Sandwich ham:

Ham made from pork can be one of the worst meats to buy, or any sliced and processed meat for that matter. It is usually made from very toxic animals, is high in nitrates and full or added water and other chemicals and sugar. Ham that is fresh off the bone or of high farmhouse style quality is the only packaged meat in it's category that is worth it's price tag. Ham that is processed from animals of this quality will do nothing more that fill your body with antibiotics and other nasty additives. Opt for another sandwich filler, or spend big and go for quality.

Low fat milk:

As you may have guessed I'm not a fan of many low fat products, and low fat milk is no exception. Favoured by many women on a low fat or calorie concious regime for weight loss. Low fat milk is full of added oxidised cholesterol to give the milk it's "natural" taste back, this is the cholesterol that will damage your arterial lining. It also has no fat, and this is a bad thing. Why? Cause all of the vitamins and minerals in milk such as vitamin D, A and K are fat soluble and require fat for absorption. This is one of the reasons these nutrients are found in milk. So avoid anything that has been through too many processing hands and opt for the natural choice. And when it comes to de-bunking any health marketing jargon do switch into common sense mode, please.

It is very common that I get spurred into a blog post frenzy from reading the newspaper. There is usually something that gets me railed and this morning is no different. In the health section of the daily mail this morning there is an article regarding the winter blues and the reasons for such a disorder. Now while I totally agree that sunlight is essential during the winter months (hence a winter break to the sun is so beneficial and done by many) it does not make up for poor diet and lifestyle choices which this article justifies.

The article makes a point to mention that if you experience dips in energy, lethargy, bouts of short term depression and experience mood swings then you are likely to be experiencing such a disorder, commonly known as SAD, or seasonal affective disorder, lack of sunlight and being in touch with seasonal light changes. While this can be true there are key take home points from such a generalised statement.

All the listed symptoms for this disorder are also symptoms of poor diet and lifestyle choices. The food you eat is meant to nourish your brain, your energy levels and your overall well-being, provide yourself with inadequate nutrition and you will fall prey of such symptoms day in day out regardless of the season.

Labelling such conditions in this way takes responsibility away from people regarding their health and weight. The article moves on to say that such a disorder can cause you to gain weight and become depressed, a catch 22 situation. But again these are all issues that are directly related to your diet and lifestyle choices.

It is so important to take responsibility for your own heath, no one is more responsible for it that you are, and labelling any disorder and believing that it is not your fault that you are overweight or poorly is not the fault of some condition (this doesn’t mean that this can’t be the case, I am generalising with common conditions here) but instead is your fault.

Poor diet and lifestyle choices lead to such conditions and it should be your responsibility to look after yourself so these situations do not occur. People that are unhealthy and view healthy people are nearly always envious of them, but blame their unfortunate situation in comparison being out of their control, but in the control of a set of symptoms that they seem to have.

Indeed vitamin D is a highly beneficial nutrient either from the sun or in supplement form in the winter months, but this does not equate to the full picture of health and wellness. Your health and longevity in health is your responsibility. You only get one chance at making the most of your health, don’t fall prey to the trap of symptomology and not taking charge of your health as a result.

Salt is a scary topic, it instantly brings out the high blood pressure alert signals, but salt can contain a whole host of very essential nutrients, it's just all boils down to what salt you are using and inadvertently how it will affect your health as a result.

A high quality sea salt compared to table salt is vastly different.

Table salt contains:

1. Sodium
2. Chloride

Whereas sea salt contains:

1. Sodium
2. Calcium
3. Potassium
4. Magnesium
5. Sulfate
6. Borate
7. Bicarbonate
8. Bromide
9. Strontium

The salt in our bodies is actually quite similar to that of sea water. At any given time there are tons of trace nutrients that travel around our bodies in our blood to nourish various systems such as muscular function and detoxification. All these different minerals help maintain a balance, but standard table salt is stripped of many of these nutrients during it's processing and all is left is sodium and chloride. Which as a result elevates blood sodium levels which can lead to increased blood pressure. This is less likely to happen with sea salt due to the balanced nutrient profile.

A good salt should not be white, but grey, blue, purple, pink or generally dirty looking. It should be moist and not move too easily in it's container or packaging showing it's unprocessed nature.

People that are very active will benefit by adding a small pinch of sea salt to their drinking water to aid blood levels of electrolytes. After all we are used to finding this kind of nutrient profile in our drinking water as most of this water would have come from fresh rivers which are nothing like normal tap water we drink today. You will find a lot of these minerals in bottled mineral water, but can be added cheaply enough with a little salt in your drinking water. If it's too salty you've added too much.

Lunch is notoriously a meal we don't always make time for as we are usually away from home. It can quite often be bought in a sandwich shop, at a Tesco's express or in a restaurant. This lunch was prepared in 5-10 minutes, a time frame easily accounted for at breakfast time. Plus it could quite possibly be the perfect lunch for the 10 reasons listed here....

So the lunch I am referring to is the photo accompanying this blog. As you can hopefully see the lunch consists of 2 smocked salmon fillets, a boiled egg, 2 large carrots grated and a handful of raw spinach roughly chopped. The raw vegetables have then been dressed with a little olive oil and some cracked pepper and sea salt.

This meal is ideal for a mixed or protein type metabolism, so proportion wise wont be suitable for everyone, but would suit 70% of people. Here I will outline the key benefits of this meal and why I think it could be the perfect meal:

1. High in good quality protein, fish and egg

2. High in omega 3 fatty acids, perfect for a healthy cardiovascular system and weight loss

3. High in good fats generally from the egg, salmon and olive oil

4. A very natural meal, nothing out of a packet or prepared by someone else in a factory somewhere random

5. High in fibre from the carrot and spinach

6 High in Iron and vitamin D and other essential vitamins and minerals for optimal health, especially in the winter months.

7. Low in carbohydrate, so will halt any drops in afternoon energy from the very first mouthful

8. Simple olive oil dressing ensures there are no artificial elements to the meal from an added dressing

9. Using sea salt provides vital electrolytes such as calcium and potassium

10. Easy to prepare, egg was pre boiled, salmon was pre smoked from Tesco's, spinach just needed chopping and carrot grating.

There is no excuse why this meal can't be your lunch. Yes it will be more expensive than making a sandwich at home but this will support your health, weight loss efforts and overall well-being on a whole different level.

Cheating in general on a diet will hold your weight loss back to some extent, but depending on the diet you are following the effects may be more detrimental than previously thought. Following a low fat diet and then having a cheat meal can really be far more detrimental than you think, especially if that meal is then high in fat. Following a low fat diet can be successful for some, but not for everyone, hence why my research on metabolic typing has proved so successful in identifying what works for an individual.

So what happens when we have this cheat meal while following a weight loss plan? Well because your diet will be so low in fat throughout the day your body will be craving it, it will be looking to get nourished with it. So if the meal that you have is relatively high in fat when you have the cheat meal the fat is highly likely to be stored because you body is primarily using carbohydrate as it's main energy source and not fat. Such meals might be a pizza, italian food or burger and chips. All these meals are high in fat and simple carbohydrates, the worst possible scenario relative to the protein ratio.

When losing weight the body wants homeostasis as much as possible, that is why diet adherence is so important. Due to a low fat diet being quite extreme in terms of fat restriction when a load of fat comes in the body will swing the other way when a high fat meal is consumed. This is not the case if a moderate fat intake is consumed on a regular basis, the reaction from the body will not be as strong as the body will be more efficient at burning fat as a fuel. But this reaction of course will be different in different people as our bodies are naturally more efficient at burning either carbohydrate or fat for energy, getting the balance right really can be the key to weight loss and controlling your energy.

So if you are trying to stick to a diet by all means cheat on days when you eat out with friends etc but try mirror the amount of fat/carb/protein your diet insists on to keep the body going in the right direction. Anything to avoid a biological backlash when on a diet is optimal for maximising your weight loss.

Now a few people in the past have asked me about the scientific research that I did at Hull University comparing Metabolic Typing and the governments approach to nutrition, so I thought I would use today's blog post to share the abstract/break down of the study. An abstract breaks down all the key areas of the research and findings and is what many will read to find out the key info, whether the research is relevant to them and decide if they want to read the whole research paper.

Introduction:

The term epidemic is commonly used to describe the increasing rates of obesity in America and around the world (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2009). We currently live in a world where our current health and new strategies for optimal health, weight loss and disease prevention is currently under scrutiny. The complexity of body weight regulation and health maintenance presents a substantial challenge to understanding the etiology of obesity and to developing strategies to treat and/or prevent it (Hill, 2006).

Aim:

The aim of this study was to compare two different diets, the government’s current dietary guidelines (EW) and the metabolic typing diet (MT), emphasising intake of macronutrient ratio and types and its effect on multiple health parameters and weight.

Method:

The study was conducted over a ten week period with 35 mixed gender participants aged 35± 10.4, height 1.7m ± 0.1, weight 84.8kg ± 17.6 recruited from a group fitness initiative call British Military Fitness in Hull, UK. Of all participants fourteen were classed as obese, fourteen overweight and seven normal (NHS, 2010). Testing included Body fat percentage, hip to waist ratio, Body Mass Index (BMI), weight, blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), blood glucose level, Health Appraisal Questionnaire (HAQ), Health History (HH) and Psychological assessment of Mood States (MS). A self-reported questionnaire was also used at post testing. Both groups were given information packs for their diets, which was enforced by a full-time nutritionist by email, telephone and weekly food diary analysis.

Results:

The EW diet group lost 1.66kg ± 2.3, and the MT group 2.2kg ± 2.7, with HAQ score improving by 172 ± 91 in the EW group and 1690 ± 117 in the MT group. Body fat increased 0.01% ± 2 in the EW group and decreased 0.39% ± 2.9 in the MT group, with waist circumference increasing in the EW group 0.53cm ± 3.8 and decreasing in the MT group 2.66cm ± 4.5. Change across the POMS scale was noticeably greater in the MT group, with greater overall negative side effects experienced in the EW group and with blood glucose regulation. All results over time were significant (
Discussion:

Previous dietary comparisons have found relatively equal success between varying diets, uncovering as much success as failure. The information regarding the current nutrition protocol for health, weight loss and weight maintenance from the NHS and Food Standards Agency (2010) seems open to debate as to whether it is the right protocol for a “one size fits all” nutritional strategy. Past research from Eaton et al., (2000, 2002, 2006); Dr Rosedale (2010) and many others make a strong case for a more Palaeolithic approach to nutrition for the maintenance of optimal health, without food staples such as flour, sugar and dairy produce.

Conclusion:

New research into the area of metabolic typing, nutrigenomics and nutrigenetics are already showing some promising results for the efficacy of a personalised approach to nutrition. Although results are promising in our study, and indicate greater success to a more natural Palaeolithic approach to nutrition with a focus on personalised macronutrient intake, more research into the area needs to be conducted with loner intervention periods.

The research is currently being modified and statistics re-run for publication in the new year.

So this week there has been an article in the newspaper that I loved. I loved it because it destroys a product that makes millions every year through fake research and poor science. This product is the probiotic drink, such as Yakult. So are you wasting your money?

Many of these probiotic drinks such as Yakult claim to improve gut health through there little drinks that millions consume with their breakfast every day. I have had many hates with this product for years but now an official report has come out banning companies from using such claims with these products as there is no solid research behind their benefit to immune or gut health.

For years I've wondered how anything that is claimed to be "live" can be live if it's been pasteurised. Pasteurisation kills bacteria, that's the whole idea of it, do you really believe that the good stuff just holds on for dear life and survives the process while the bad bacteria just happily die off?

Many of the drinks claim to boost your immune system, a useful benefit in the winter months, but the EU watchdog has now deemed these claims inconclusive and have banned such companies such as Yakult from using such claims in their marketing and promotion material. Over 800 claims have been made in the past over such drinks, all of which are not allowed to be used in future promotions for such products. So I can imagine there will be some new spin on Yakult's marketing campaign hitting our TV screen soon! Maybe they will tell us it's just the perfect start to the day...

Such claims have lead consumers to pay up to £2.50 for a pack of six, more than double the price of a carton of whole fresh organic natural yoghurt that is guaranteed to be full of probriotic goodness. So the conclusion? Spend your money wisely and opt for a good quality natural yoghurt instead that you can make a nice breakfast from. Add nuts, seeds and berries to a bowl of fresh yoghurt and you have a great healthy breakfast in front of you.

No if you have ever eaten McDonald's I hope it was not out of choice for this blog post uncovers what really happens to a happy meal when left to it's own devices...

Now I quantify good food as something that has energy in it, if it has energy in it then this energy will be passed to us as humans and used by us for health and repair. Foods such as raw vegetables, fish and fruits are prime example of great food sources that provide us with ample nutrition. Now do you think a happy meal will fall into this category? Many will say no but it's still food right? I would also quantify food as something that bio-degrades as it ages, just like fruit rots if left out more than a week or two.

Sally Davies bought a McDonald's Happy Meal on April 26, 2010. She placed it on her coffee table, uncovered, and took photos every day for six months. And what do you think happened, find out...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sallydavies/sets/72157624739645253/with/4951821242/

Yes you saw it, nothing happened, not even a spec of mould or fur or anything, all the happy meal lost was a bit of water hence it looks slightly died out. Every time you consume foods such as a happy meal or other highly processed or package foods you are forcing the body to use it's own energy to break it down and process it. Once this has occurred the body then gets nothing in return. Usually the body will get more energy from a food it has broken down but with foods such as a happy meal it takes more energy to break it down and process it than the body gets in return. I call these foods non-foods, cause there not food, you might as well eat some cardboard and polystyrene!

Now indeed we might eat fast food now and again out of convenience and necessity but I urge you to make a better choice than many of the current non-foods on offer.