You Are What You Eat

by Steve Halsall

A Celebrity Personal Trainer

This phrase always makes me smile. I once heard it delivered in a comedy sketch and it came out like this, ‘If you are what you eat mate, then you just ate a fat bloke for lunch’. It in many ways has both a certain element of truth and although none of us will eat anyone, it has a simplicity to it that remains a fact. If you eat crap food you will end up looking and feeling crap. Simple.

I appreciate that every one of you has their own way of eating that works for you on many levels. Personal food consumption is a whirl of many things; emotion, habit, routine and inherited selections. If you then marry this to the never ending pressure to look amazing and the amount of information that is constantly bombarding us in the media, then the simple act of eating becomes a complex process.

I guess as someone who has to advise people on the best way to eat, I use a certain formula that not only allows people to look the best they ever have but it also allows flexibility and freedom. If you are what you eat then it stands to reason that eating foods which are rich in energy, natural and fresh, will over time help you feel more energised and more likely to shift excess weight. Too much is made on the aesthetic consequences of eating natural food and few people recognise that eating the right food helps with mood, self perception and an over all sense of calm.

There is something very empowering about not stressing about food. Not worrying about if something is right or wrong or wondering if the calorific numbers are balanced. Quite simply, eating right is so basic, so easy and achievable that everyone can do it. At the end of the day, it is about choices and understanding, what does and doesn’t work for you and establishing some levels of self-control and knowledge.

It stands to reason that if you avoid the four main stimulants that most of society accepts as normal, being sugar, alcohol, caffeine and cigarettes, then you will be less likely to eat rubbish food. If you are constantly peaking and dropping with your energy levels, then you are more likely intuitively to select food that just services the moment rather than satisfying the long term energy needs of your body. If you make the right choices and undulate with your energy every day rather than spiking via stimulants and processed food, then you will look better and you will feel better.

What’s more, when you have control and a good rhythm to your daily food intake, you will notice more than ever the effects of both rubbish food and excess. Some of my clients have become all too aware of having food hangovers after eating too many canapés too late at night. This is a good place to be and they then have a choice on how to feel better by eating well the next day.

 

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