Just one thing for 2022 - Changing your meal times

On the radio 4 programme “Just One Thing” on Sunday 19th Sept 2021 Michael Mosley discussed restricting eating so that you fast for 12 to 14 hours over night. The benefits of doing this can help reduce weight by up to 5% (without changes to total calories), reduce blood pressure and reduce cholesterol. Reducing obesity also goes along way in reducing general diseases. The programme: goes on to discuss how it does this.....

Our circadium system is disrupted by eating late at night and causes a lot of problems in our body including increasing inflammation. If we eat late at night it stimulates the brain to stay awake and yet the body is producing other hormones such as melatonin which inhibits the secretion of insulin. This makes it hard for our body to store glucose properly and may increase blood sugar levels which can cause diabetes. So if we stop eating 2 to 3 hours before we go to bed it reduces the chances of developing diabetes. This includes drinks so just have hot or cold water outside your eating window. Even if people are on medication they can still reduce blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

So restricting your eating time, even if you still remain on the same amount of calories can help you loose weight.

It is advised to choose 8 to 10 hours window where you are eating then drink water outside of these times. They followed Steph to see how she did and she found eating her main meal at lunch time really helped and she was not hungry at 5pm when she is normally eating crisps and cakes as snacks. However it was after the evening meal that she found hard not to eat.

I have been working with clients with this process for over 15 years. They report improved sleep, loss of weight, clarity of mind and lifted spirits. Here is one success story:

Maggie after a 6 week programme and also receiving regular Reflexology

I thought I ate healthily before I started, so probably wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t thought it was a good idea and you found from my feet that my pancreas was showing up as not clear.

It was all rather overwhelming at first and a lot to take on board, but once I’d done a few weeks of the rebalance days I got the hang of it and didn’t have to think too much about it as I had the right ingredients to hand and remembered to prepare things such as the stock. Now it feels good to have a clean out once a week. And I’ve lost weight which is a bonus, not that I was really overweight before, but I have felt for some time that I’d like to lose half a stone. In fact I’ve lost a stone!

Thank you Alison. You have made me rethink my diet and the acid, alkaline issue.

Over these 15 years I have developed various tips on how to eat less in the evening. Here are just three tips to help with reducing the temptation of snacking in the evening

1. After your evening meal brush your teeth. This stimulates the brain to say to your body “it’s the end of eating”. It refreshes your mouth and reduces the chance of you being tempted to eat later on.

2. Try it just one day a week on an easy day for you. You may say to your other family members that on X day you are just having a bowl of soup or a simple meal. Then slowly build up from there until you can manage it every day of the week.

3. Drink water between 3pm and 5pm. The amount depends on how much you are drinking at the moment but I would say aim to drink 1 to 2 pints between this time. We often are thirsty when we feel hungry and if you drink water in the afternoon is satisfies the thirst and so may reduce any hunger later on in the evening.

Hope this helps. If you would like to know more please do get in touch. I offer free 15 minutes consultations on the phone. Here is my online diary if you would like to book one in https://calendly.com/alison-marsden22/15min?month=2021-09