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Today’s show is inspired in part by stunning SPRING (Woohoo!) and also by the #155 show on: How To Stop Supermarket Sabotage. The same basic premise applies… it means giving up on the self deceiving approach of expecting to one day miraculously wake up more disciplined, more motivated and less emotionally attached to food.

I never woke up insanely disciplined and if you’ve struggled with your weight for years then I’m pretty sure it’ll never happen for you either. What CAN happen is you’ll out-plan your old weakness’s and old excuses.

Today I’m going to roll with the acronym format. As such I have 6 steps to:

Stop Spring Sabotage.

#1. S.alads and Smoothies / Juices.

As it gets warmer the salads and green juices that were somewhat unappealing over the winter months are looking more attractive. I won’t lie to you – I’ll eat whatever I deem to be Best – regardless of the weather however I’m noticing my friends and family are getting a lot more receptive to lighter food options.

I’m a huge fan of salads, smoothies and juices done right.

Here are a few saboteurs to look out for though:

=> the light-weight salad that gave ALL salads the undeserved nickname rabbit food and leaves you starving and highly susceptible to some sneaky snackie little high caloric density low value rubbish.

=> the smoothie/juice that’s more like a blended dessert of fruit, milk, yogurt, nut’s and seeds. Although at least there’s micronutrient value in such a juice it’s also very easy to consume a huge serving and still not feel all that satisfied.

=> the salad that’s packing a potent amount of low value fats and carbs. Think croutons and excessively oily or salty dressing.

The alternative?

Build your salad, smoothie or juice like any other awesome body gaining meal. Start with a heap of fibrous veg, add lean protein and finish with good fat.

#2. P.rioritise One Ingredient Goodness.

Yes, you’ve heard me rave on about One Ingredient Foods a lot. It’s purely because they work. They work so far as providing your body with nutritious high value fuel that helps you strip fat, maintain lean muscle and have the energy to power through your day without resorting to the fake-food-UNfix.

Spring is associated with new life right?

Well, one ingredient goodness is the simplest way to give your body a new lease of life. It doesn’t even have to be a complete overhaul. Perhaps as easy as swapping:

=> toast for eggs at breakfast.

=> bread for nori or a collard leaf wrap at lunch.

=> stodgy pasta for lighter zucchini pasta at dinner.

#3. R.evisit Seasonal Veg and Fruit That Perhaps You’re Yet To Love.

It’s amazing how great the best of a certain type of food can taste. So by the best I mean: fresh, in season and either raw or cooked well.

Equally as we age our taste buds mature.

It’s absolutely worth revisiting a previously unloved veg or fruit. Try it at it’s peak. Here are some of my spring favs:

=> asparagus – not microwaved to death – perhaps charred on the BBQ, or as thin raw peels in a salad or lightly steamed and rolled with avocado, pesto and chill omelet in cauli-rice sushi.

=> brussel sprouts – not boiled whole and bland – maybe sliced into rounds and roasted till crispy with chill, rosemary, rock salt and olive oil.

=> fennel – not in big undercooked chunks of disgustingness! – possibly shaved finely in a salad such as a delish combo of baby fennel, pear, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, parmesan and toasted walnuts (I found that one on taste.com.au and here’s the link to it).

#4. I.nvent Better Spring Favourites.

Spring makes me think lamb. Now I’m vego so it actually just makes me think happy little lambs frolicking around in the slightly naive and ideally optimistic way that I can be… however from lamb my mind tracks to tabouli and I don’t even know why I’m just going with it!

My point is YOU likely have your personal family spring favs? And, there’s a fair chance they could do with a slight upgrade (not in taste I’m sure they’re yum) however perhaps so far as swapping out some unnecessary carbie refined stuff and maybe amping up the protein and one ingredient goodness.

One of my current favs is my Cauli-Kale-Tabouli.

=> Anything goes however this one has: 1/2 medium head cauliflower, 1/2 bunch kale, 1/4 cup basil and oregano, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds,1 red capsicum, 1-2 spring onions, 8 sun-dried tomato halves, Himalayan salt, olive oil, hemp seeds and nutritional yeast.

=> Even if you don’t have specific spring favs you likely have your Go2Meals that you tend to rely on? The change of season (and maybe that’s autumn for my northern hemisphere friends!) is the perfect time to revisit and either upgrade or completely transform your current Go2Meals. If you’re after some inspiration I’ll link to my Go2Breakfasts, Lunches and Dinners in the show notes.

=> A really simple way to start in meal design is to think of your 3 fav fibrous veg, 3 fav lean protein and 3 fav good fats and then match make between them. So you’ll have a breakie based around a fibrous veg + a lean protein + a good fat and so on for lunch and dinner.

#5. N.ever Be Fooled By Deceptive Liquid Calories.

We covered the liquid desert in step one. Further to that potential saboteur is… ALCOHOL.

It’s getting warmer, the blue sky… beer garden… beach-side picnics all beckon and that’s just awesome however some simple guidelines will help ensure you’re not drinking all your great eating efforts out of effect. I cover: How much alcohol can I drink and still lose weight, in the #010 show.

I don’t make a habit of counting calories – in fact I never do – although the things to be mindful of, from a spring (or anytime!) body point of view are:

=> Please don’t let alcohol consumption occur in place of the quality fuel your body deserves. So that’s the old eatings cheating scenario… that perhaps our bodies put up with when we were younger however now you know better right? It’s also the reduced inhibitions scenario where that pizza or those hot chips suddenly become a lot harder to refuse.

=> Choose the better bad. Actually that feels incongruent. You know I don’t think alcohol is bad! Vices are important and normal and if alcohol is your vice then you can make it work however don’t go overboard with toxic sugary mixers (have soda water or mineral water instead). Ditch beer or cider, trust me – I know how great they taste in the sun – yet sadly it’s just not going to work for your best body. Ideally choose red over white wine or rose or champagne. And in addition also… 

=> Set a weekly guideline that works for YOU. So it may be alcohol free days each week. Or number of drinks each night. Or my personal preference: Set a weekly quota. This works for me because I don’t feel restricted and yet each week I end up on track. I can be flexible and have more than what is ideal earlier in the week and my running tally ensures it doesn’t just accumulate into a deceptive liquid calorie habit that is hard to break.

#6. G.et Into A Routine You Can Sustain.

Spring lets you know Summer is coming… I get so excited each year it’s like I forget that Winter ends! And that winter in Sydney is actually positively mild. Stripping of the winter layers can be somewhat daunting though if you’ve got a stubborn layer of fat you’d like to strip first! The temptation can be to enforce extreme. To attempt to shed the fat you might have taken 12 months to accumulate in a mere month or two.

I know extreme measures and extreme results can be hugely motivating. However I’m black and white in this one:

I’m NOT a fan of extreme. The people I see who get to enjoy great results from extreme also get to fluctuate more extremely between having a body they’re happy with and having a body they hate.

Why not create the routine that you can sustain…as a lifestyle… for ever?

The routine that lets you always progress. If more slowly at least you’re always taking a step forward. Rather than 3 steps forward and 3 steps back, Every. Single. Year. When creating the routine you can sustain:

=> Look at what’s worked in the past, because there’s a good chance it’ll prove successful again this time.

=> Equally, consider what hasn’t worked in the past. That doesn’t mean you need to discount it completely. It does mean you need to come up with multiple solutions / alternatives to whatever obstacles meant it didn’t work last time.

=> Finally, observe what works for the person you admire AND who you can relate to – so far as age / work / family / financial situation who already has the results you want?

We must be at the time of the actionable! To get actionable today, and again this is applicable whether Spring is the season upon you right now or not… What is the sabotage stopping step that you’d most benefit from working into your routine?

Todays quote is courtesy of B. C. Forbes: “It is only the farmer who faithfully plants seeds in the Spring, who reaps a harvest in the Autumn.”

Here’s to your faithful planting. 🙂

That’s it for today. I hope you can join me for the Wednesday Weigh-in show. It’s a good one! I’m covering: 101 Ways To Cut Carbs When Eating Out.

If you liked this you’ll also like: How To Prevent Weight Gain Over Christmas and New Year (6 step survival blueprint).

If you’re yet to share the Healthification love – just click here to zip over to iTunes and leave an honest rating and review. It’d help me out big time. With gratitude, Kate.