Many of the countries women must be dreading the first day back at work and the inevitable squeeze into the work clothes. You are not alone in this thinking however it’s up to you where you go from here! As there are many different diets on the market we thought we would discuss the Lazy Girls Diet, this is ideal for the woman who would rather being anything else rather than slaving over a hot stove.

This is a simple diet and if you are a single person you can lose as much as 10lbs in only one month, all you have to do is visit your local shop and buy any pre-packed food which is low-calorie and low in fat. There is no need to prepare, count calories or look at fat content, in-fact all you do is heat it up and eat away to your heart’s desire and the good thing about this diet is that it is also suitable if you are vegetarian.

This diet works by choosing 3 pre-packed meals plus one snack per day, you have to eat the entire meals, do not miss any meals as this will make you make you hungry and then you will tempted to snack. As with all diets you have to drink at least eight glasses of water this will keep your body hydrated and will also take the edge off your appetite, if water is a bit bland for you then you can drink tea and coffee without the sugar.

As well as the milk on the diet you are allowed to drink 300ml of skimmed milk on top of any milk that is mentioned in the diet sheets.

This diet will consist of some of the following:

Breakfast

• A 200g pot Müller Light Cherry Yogurt, 1 medium-sized banana and 1 apple
• Small individual pack of Shreddies from a variety pack with 150ml skimmed milk. Small glass orange juice.
• 6tbsp Fruit ‘n’ Fibre with a 200g pot of Total 0% Fat Greek Natural Yogurt.

Lunch

• 250g of Tuna (John West or Tesco health living), Smoothie Yogurt, and 2 kiwi fruit.
• Boots shapers meals.
• Asda Good for you sandwiches

Dinners

• Tesco’s healthy living meals
• Asda Good to you range meals
• Birds Eye Roast Beef in gravy, 2 small boiled potatoes

Snacks one per day

• 30 seedless grapes
• 10 Maltesers
• 1 apple and 2 satsumas
• Boots shapers fruit selection.

As well as the Lazy girl diet there is also a range of lazy Girl exercises

Therefore choosing the right diet can be just as important as actually carrying it through!

Over the next few weeks we at Weight-loss-Now will be giving you our experience of different diets, hopeful giving you a better understanding of their good and bad points.

The Atkins Diet or the Atkins Nutritional Approach first arrived in Britain in 1972 by an American Dr Robert Atkins; the thinking behind this diet is to cut or limit the amount of Carbohydrates that the body takes in.

This is a high protein, high fat diet which will suit any meat lover.

However it has come in for some bad press over the years due to the amount of fat and protein that the body has to absorb, some people say that it is unhealthy and dangerous as your body in not getting enough of the carbohydrates it requires to function properly and you may find it harder to concentrate and focus properly and may cause constipation and mood swings. This diet has not been around that long so no long term studies into any dangers are conclusive yet.

How does the Atkins diet work?

Our bodies need energy to do everyday tasks from breathing to taking a shower as we are doing a task our bodies are gathering energy from carbohydrates and fat, the carbohydrates are the first to be burnt as energy so the fat has nowhere to go (well we all know where it goes), so the thinking of Dr Robert Atkins is to drastically cut down on the carbohydrates and burn the fat first.

This diet does work and in the first couple of weeks people are expected to lose as much as 10 pounds per week.

I personally like this diet, I have used it and lost nearly two stone in the past, if you love eating fish, chicken and the odd fried breakfast then you will enjoy this diet.

As with all diets it is recommended that you speak to your GP before attempting any food cut down.

As kids we were taken out to a restaurant for our birthday or a special occasion, and every month we would have a treat, something from the local chip shop or if we were really lucky a Chinese, it gave us as family something to look forward to. Now that was going back a few years ago I have to admit.

Like I said you cannot go down the local shopping centre without passing at least five restaurants all selling burgers, pizzas, kebabs and noodles, most filled with families all enjoying their lunch/dinner. As we pass the shops we can see families munching into large portions of fish and chips, burgers and some enjoying foods from other exotic countries.

Everyone loves going out for their dinner but as parents we have a legal responsibility to look after our children’s health. In a recent survey it was estimated that one in six children under the age of 18, eat a ready meal or a take away every day. This could lead to serious health problems for our children in later life, problems such as:

• High salt levels and lack of exercise this will increase their risk of stroke.
• Obesity will affect many of our children causing them to suffer from heart problems, diabetes and joint problems.
• Suffer from many different types of cancer, including liver, kidney and stomach.

Think about what you are doing to your kid’s health the next time you decide to take them out for a three course meal, look for the healthier options on the menu and your kids will thank you for it in years to come.

So, this has lead me to browse the internet looking for stories, topics and news related to weight loss. Today, I stumbled on a beauty – The Baby Food Diet. It doesn’t take much imagine to what exactly you have to do. Hey, even the chief designer at Christian Dior has talked in essence about the Baby Food Diet.

I’m just not convinced, that all those tubs of pureed mush, which I bolked on when feeding to my own kids is the stuff for me. Seriously, you can stick your Farley’s Rusk where the sun don’t shine, this is one bloke who is going to lose weight any which way he can but not on a diet of baby food, nosiree.

Which brings me nicely onto my subject matter. Back in January of this year, news trickled out about how the ‘Alli Weight Loss Pill‘ was giving the go-ahead as the first over-the-counter weight loss tablet in the UK.

Now, as of yesterday, the Alli Pill was once again in the media headlines as its release date nears. Stories of how people were caught unexpected, after taking the pill, as their bodies flushed out the excess fat at a moments notice are never nice to hear. But that is the truth of the matter! The product tells you this! Don’t people read anymore! Why all the hullabaloo? But yet the media love this …

Look, let’s get one thing clear. The Alli weight Loss Pill is no magic bullet. Taking it alone won’t help you lose weight. And yes, people might become victims of its side-effects, just the same as people who eat a certain food and it doesn’t agree with them.

You can’t just buy into headlines without reading the article. If you sit-down and actually read the instructions that come with Alli you’ll notice that it is not just a ‘magic’ weight loss pill but an actual program to help you lose weight. However, you can be assured that the makers of Alli are none-too-concerned about all the media coverage and I’ll bet they’ll be a few more people caught short on the bus home by the end of the week and still it’ll sell!

What can we do to lose those extra pounds? Good news is that you don’t have to spent hundreds of pounds on the gym. A resent study has shown that people peaked in their diets and lost the desired amount in about 6 months, willpower and boredom was then to blame and then to gained half the amount of lost weight back.

A little change to your way of life can make all the difference to your health, walk to the shops, did you know that a 40min walk can burn as much as 1240 calories over a week, take the stairs rather than the lift, not only will this help you loose weight but your general fitness will increase dramatically.

One of the most difficult things we face is the feeling of being hungry all the time, we are used to smacking so much of the time our bodies think that it needs food constantly. For the people that like to snack through the day, try to eat fruit instead of that chocolate bar, yogurts are very good for you and also a great source of calcium. Remember your 5-a-day, if you have fruit or vegetables with every meal you will achieve this or make it much easier.

Weight loss is not an easy thing, you have to be in the right frame of mind, no-one says its easy, one way shown to help is to keep a record of your achievements, how far you walked, how long it took and the number of snacks you had. There is no easy fix to weight loss its all down to hard work and determination.

Those who wish to participate in the scheme are rewarded if they reach key performance indicators (kpi) £70 if they lose 15lb, a further £90 for losing 30lb and another £265 to shed 50lbs – a total of £425.

Participants will only receive half of the money if they reach the kpi targets. The rest is handed over if they keep it off for six months.

Already, there is rising condemnation to the ‘Pounds for Pounds’ weight-loss incentive scheme. Claiming that the NHS is already cash-strapped and that weight loss should be a personal, financial choice and that the UK government should stop trying to be a ‘Nanny State‘!

Final word goes to Claire Martin, public health specialist for the NHS in East Kent, who said: “Achieving a healthier weight and encouraging people to choose a healthier lifestyle are major issues for the health service … We hope this trial will help establish whether financial incentives can motivate people to shed the pounds – and keep them off.”