Instead of trying to do all of them at once. Pick 1 or 2 to try each week and in a couple of months you could be sporting a flatter belly!

1. Ditch the beige dead food and wheat!  This is the single biggest cause of excess belly fat and muffin tops!  Wheat is the biggest appetite stimulator and cause of food addiction. Two slices of wholegrain bread will raise your blood sugar more than 2 tables spoons of table sugar!  Excess sugar in our diets, whether from chocolate or bread will guarantee belly fat!
2. Increasing your protein intake at each meal can rev up your metabolism by as much as 12%!  Including some lean quality proteins such as turkey, fish or chicken at every meal will keep cravings at bay.  People who eat more protein naturally consume less calories yet still feel full!  When your hunger and cravings are in check your body will happily shed it’s excess fat stores!
3. Stay away from the cardio machines!!  Excess cardio acts as a stress to the body.  Most women are wrongly led to believe that they must do hours of cardio to banish belly fat!  This is a myth and can actually make belly fat worse! Ditch the long duration cardio and pay a visit to the weights room instead.  A few sets of squats or dead lifts will torch the fat from your belly and thighs!  Exercise smarter not harder!
4. Put the pink barbie dumb bells in the bin!   Being lean will ensure you are a super charged fat burning machine all day, every day!  If your dumbbells weigh less than your handbag then you are wasting your time!  To burn excess body fat, especially from the tummy, you need to lift heavy weights.  Pick compound moves such as press-ups, squats or combined moves such as a lunge to shoulder press.  You should use a weight heavy enough to cause failure (burning in the muscle) at around 8-12 reps.  Don’t worry… our lack of testosterone means it’s impossible to build any big bulky muscles!
5. Ditch the soda and diet drinks…..Water is the elixir of life!  For every can of diet-soda a person drinks daily, their risk of being overweight increases by 41%. Every metabolic function in the body relies upon the cells being properly hydrated. Dehydration will actually cause bloating and fake hunger signals.  Drinking water throughout the day will keep you energised and less likely to reach for the dehydrating sugary coffees!
6. Walking is one the most underrated forms of exercise.  Low intensity walking lowers stress hormones responsible for storing belly fat and carb cravings.  Take your walks outside to increase your intake of Vitamin D from daylight.  This coupled with a few good quality training sessions in the gym will encourage fat burning by preserving your precious muscle tissue.
7. Sleep your way to a flatter tum!  YES!  Getting a good 10 hours is key to a tiny tummy.  The hours between 10 and 4am is the prime time for fat burning and hormonal reset.  Lack of sleep raises stress hormones that lead us to the biscuits, coffee and chocolate and will lock fat in the belly!
8. Ditch the sit-ups!  Yep ditch those crunches actually burn very few calories and simply does not burn fat from the belly!  Add in some super charged metabolic moves instead that will ramp up fat metabolism.  A few sets of burpees, squat jumps or switch jumps in between lifting weights will switch up your fat burning hormones for up to 48 hours after the workout has finished!
9. Get thinner, happier friends!  Being surrounded by naturally thin and positive friends will encourage a similar mindset.  Socialising with heavy drinking and takeaway loving friends will scupper your best intentions.  They will do their very best to keep you from achieving your flat belly. After all, who wants their best friend to be thinner than them?
10. Pro-biotics are essential for a healthy tummy!  These beneficial bacteria help the gut and immune system to stay healthy.  Stress, regular use of antibiotics and a highly processed diet can cause an imbalance in our gut flora, leaving us bloated and open to infections and viruses.  Nasty bacteria love to feed on sugar, but the healthy bacteria love lots of fibre from fruits and vegetables!  Avoid the shop bought yoghurts which are full of sugar.  Pro-biotics in capsules contain a much higher dose of the good guys.
11. Including plenty of fibre encourages healthy digestion and helps avoid tummy bloating constipation.  We are wrongly led to believe that whole grains are a good choice for fibre.  However, vegetables have 8 times more fibre in per serving and they aren’t packed full of belly bloating wheat or sugars.  Vegetables will also keep us regular, more full and give us an extra dose of health giving, fat burning antioxidants.
12. Eat fat to burn fat!  Ditch the bad fats found in processed foods.  Opt for natural fats such as extra virgin and coconut oil.  Take a fish oil supplement to obtain extra omega 3s.  These essential fatty acids aid fat burning by reducing inflammation and increasing cell sensitivity and therefore fat burning efficiency and blood sugar regulation.
13. Eat slowly!  Eating too quickly causes us to take in more food than we need.  Digestion actually begins in our mouths and it can take up to 20 mins for our brains and hunger hormones to recognise fullness.  Plus taking in excess air or not chewing properly can cause excess wind and bloating.
14. Include raw, live foods in each meal.  A small salad, grapefruit or some raw vegetables can really help the gut digest food.  Cooking food, even steaming can destroy or reduce the natural enzymes present causing bloating and food sensitivities. Plus a small salad will fill you up and you will eat less calories over all!
15. Skipping meals and going on low calorie diets is a sure fire way of ensuring your body becomes an efficient fat storing machine!  Our bodies are programmed to survive calorie restriction and will burn muscle in an attempt to slow the metabolism.  Over 95% of diets fail for this reason and our genetic blueprint has evolved over millions of years making fat storing easier than fat burning.  The key is to never get hungry and to eat more of the right foods such as plenty of lean proteins, good fats and vegetables.  So ditch the scales and the diets.  It’s not about eating less, it’s about eating more and smarter!
16. Eat balsamic vinegar with your meals!  This slows the blood sugar and insulin response of any starches and can help make you feel fuller fast and for longer.  The Italians got it right after all!

Just some of these tips could transform you belly from lump to super flatness! Maybe there are some you do already? That’s great. Now lets see if you can do a few more!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill – The Fat Controller

This little trick will be sure to rev up your metabolism and done smartly you can add an extra 10 minutes of high intensity activity into your day without having to leave the office!

In fact, get your work colleagues to join in.  If they don’t they will soon wish they did as they see your energy levels rise and your fat disappear!

60 second fat loss:

Set an alarm clock to go off every 60 mins for the day. Either use your computer or mobile phone.

Each time the alarm goes off choose one of the following exercises and perform for 60s or until you are so breathless and your muscles are burning you can’t continue.  To increase intensity, have some dumbbells hidden under your desk for a sneaky weights session in between board meetings or while you are waiting for the kettle to boil!

1. press-ups
2. lunges
3. power squats (add a little jump after each squat)
4. high knees (sprint on the spot)
5. run up and down a flight of stairs
6. power lunges (add a hop in between lunges)
7. single leg squats
8. planks
9. star jumps
10. burpees
11. roundhouse kicks and uppercuts
12. mountain climbers
13. bicycles
14. tuck jumps
15. squat thrusts
16. side planks
17. shoulder presses
18. Bent over flys
19. Squat rows
20. DB squats

These are just examples and there are plenty more you can find on the Internet. Be imaginative and use variety.  Perform them safely and controlled. When you are comfortable with the moves then you can add speed or power to increase the intensity further.

When you feel stronger and fitter, set your alarm for 30 min intervals and double your workouts!  If you work at home consider investing in some basic equipment such as a Z-trainer or TRX system that can be fitted to door ways etc. As well as dumbbells you could use Kettlebells or steps to add variety to your 60 second bursts.

The longer your working day, then more 60 second bursts you can fit in!

Of course you can further enhance and increase your results:

• Follow a fat controlling food plan such as the one on Ignite.  Simple cut back on starches (bread, pasta, sugar etc) and increase your protein (chicken, eggs fish etc) and fibre (vegetables, salads etc)
• Wear a pedometer and aim to get to 10,000 steps initially.  Then aim for 15,000 and then 20,000 – a fasted pre-breakfast and pre-lunch time walk is ideal
• Fidget as much as possible. Read my blog here about how you can increase calorie burn by simply fidgeting!
• Use the stairs all the time and take two steps at a time and sprint up them
• Install a punch bag in the office! Great for stress relief
• Drink water and green all day in stead of coffee and teas
• Make sure you are getting good sleep every night – here’s why!

Now if you are finding yourself making excuses…… I can’t do that at work there is no room or I will look stupid.  Then start to ask yourself how much you really want to change and improve things.  Without change there is no change. So if you are a busy workaholic and you want body change, health and fitness then this could be the perfect solution!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill – The Fat Controller

One client shows how she has learned to become a brilliant fat controller during Ignite and has learned the power of understanding how to balance hormones! The result?

INCHES AND FAT GONE despite eating more!

DOES IT MAKE THE FAT BURN FASTER?

Something I teach my clients and members is about how to become a fat controller. This isn’t about learning how to control fat intake or count calories. It’s about how to balance your hormones so you effortlessly control body fat and calories intake.

On my programmes, both on-line (Ignite for women) (Ignite for men) and off-line we cover all the education needed to teach you how to be a fat controller and control hormones.

This is something that takes practice, persistence and time. In fact I advocate adopting an ‘it’s necessary to fail’ approach and this is because you need to fail in order to learn.

“Does it make the fat burn faster?”

A really important question you should practice asking yourself all day and every day is……..

DOES IT MAKE THE FAT BURN FASTER?

In other words:

• Will drinking more water help the fat burn faster or store fat?
• Will a bread roll with dinner help the fat burn faster or store fat?
• Will the second glass of wine help the fat burn faster or make we want to eat more?
• Will this sandwich burn fat faster or store fat?
• Will this workout help me burn fat faster or store fat?
• Will skipping breakfast make the fat burn faster or store fat?
• Will this late night help me burn fat faster or drive my cravings and hunger through the roof?
• Will skipping my daily walk today help me burn fat faster or store fat?

So you can start to see how this question will help bring mindfulness to you decisions and choices. When you start to become mindful and empowered with the knowledge of a fat controller you can start to make fat controlling choices more easily and effortlessly

In business I always ask myself when prioritising tasks ‘does it make the boat go faster’. This helps me enormously in choosing which elements are necessary to grow my business. It dawned on me that this is a great way to help people to ask themselves which things they do can help them to achieve their goals faster and more efficiently!

So are you ready to start asking does it ‘make the fat burn faster?’

Big love, small tummies!

Jill x

p.s. you can work with me on-line for 28 days!! Ignite for men and Ignite for women is educational programme you can follow at home or at work without the need for a gym!

Are you a member of the Sweet FA?

Have I lost my marbles?

Have a I been hit by a sugary meteorite?

NO I most definitely have not!  This is a serious topic for many people and one I hope to address in this post.

So tough love first.  Life is not fair and at times we have to just accept this and move on!  Right on with the article:

For some poor folk, no matter what they do they just can’t seem to kick the sugar habit.  Despite knowing what they should and shouldn’t be eating they just can’t seem to resist or say no!

Does this sound like you?

The day has gone well, you managed the gym in the morning before work and have eaten sensibly all day. Yet depite this when you arrive home from work you just can’t seem to squash the cookie monster! Despite all the healthy foods in the cupboards and fridge – the chocolate and biscuits won’t stop calling your name!  You crumble like your rich tea biscuit in hot milk as you succumb to your next fix!  Yes despite inwardly berrating yourself and telling yourself to STOP IT! you can’t seem to put the brakes on as the final biscuit in the packet has gone……AGAIN!

Hands up how many are nodding their head? Hands up who blame themselves and their apparent lack of self-control and will power?

I have battled with this one myself. And for years blamed myself for being weak. What I am about to share with you may explain a lot to you and even give you hope!

It’s not lack of will power or self-control.  It’s not that you are greedy or weak.  If you are a naturally thin person reading this then likely you are shaking your head in disagreement.  We have all met someone who can start a bar of chocolate and stop when they have had enough……….. these people are few and far between but also VERY LUCKY!  This isn’t some measure of outstanding inner strength, this is merely a part of your genetic makeup.  I have learnt and now understand that for SOME PEOPLE sweet foods can be more addictive and difficult to avoid or reduce.

Let me repeat this: For SOME PEOPLE sweet foods can be more addictive and difficult to avoid or reduce.

In other words, some people are born with what we call a ‘sweet tooth’ but I refer to as a genetic predisposition to the sweet taste and euphoria produced when eating sweet foods.  In plain terms, some of us get high on it!!!! Which means some of us get withdrawals too!

Let’s look at the facts surrounding why sugar can be so bad for us:

• Sugar messes with your blood sugar and hormones causing hunger, cravings, crashes, fatigue……
• Sugar raises stress hormones
• Sugar blunts the immune system
• Sugar feeds bad bacteria and yeast giving insatiable cravings and belly bloat
• Sugar causes gas
• Sugar makes you better at storing fat and KEEPING IT!
• Sugar is an anti-nutrient and will take out more nutrients that it puts back in, leaving your nutrient bank account OVERDRAWN!
• Sugar makes you over eat
• Sugar rots your teeth
• Sugar creaste inflammation inside our bodies and makes us sick!

Now it isn’t as simple as this.  Yes I know – we all want it to be simple and easy.  But life has a habit of not being like that! So we have to accept that life isn’t fair and we have to deal with what we have got.

So what do I mean it isn’t as simple as just sugar?  

It isn’t just sugar that can raise blood sugar levels in this way.  STRESS can.  Yep you can actually stress your way to being fat or having diabetes.  This isn’t just stress from work, partners or kids. Excess exercise or lack of sleep for example can all count towards your stress levels.  Stress depletes happy brain chemicals making you crave even more sugar and starch.  The combination of stress and genetics makes it very difficult for some folk to get control of their diets.

So in the above scenario, no matter how hard you try to control the cravings and urges, the power that our hormones have makes it almost impossible to resist this metabolic roller coaster and trap we find ourselves in as our out of balance hormones take us prisoner and lead us to the biscuit barrel and bottle of wine.

So what has changed?

Our ancestors would have only eaten a total of about 22 teaspoons of sugar per year.  Can you guess how much it is now?

A whopping 140 lbs of sugar a year! So our diets have changed massively but you know what…… WE HAVEN”T

Did you know consuming sugar is the fastest way to age your body!!! 

The problem is our ancestors evolved to develop lots of hormones to raise blood sugar naturally becuase their diets didn’t do the job sufficiently.  And when you are running away from a sabre tooth tiger then you need all the help you can get.  Today, we have many mechanisms and hormones to raise blood sugar PLUS a shockingly bad diet consisting of largely #beigedeadfood and sugar!  Coupled with a distinct lack of sabre tooth tigers to run away from!

The problem is that due to high levels of blood sugar, we are not only experiencing obesity, but also high levels of inflammation and a faulty metabolisms resulting in appetites that are difficult to control.

So let me re-cap: Stress and excess blood sugar can deplete feel-good hormones in the brain making you tired and fatigued, causing more cravings and hunger for sweet, sugary carbs.

Is this you?

You struggle to wake up – you feel tired and stressed almost from the word get go.  You reach for the coffee and possibly cereal or toast? This kick starts the blood sugar roller coaster yet again for another day of fighting a losing battle. Mid morning and mid afternoon you feel the slumps yet again! Finally you reach home and CAN’T SEEM TO PUT THE LID ON THE BISCUIT BARREL!

Note: coffee and caffeinated beverages (including diet coke and pepsi) can also raise blood sugar levels leading to more cravings!

Now the good news:  Your brain does need some glucose to run on.  This is it’s primary fuel source. But it doesn’t need much in any one sitting. Just a nice steady drip feed to keep it happy and ticking over.  The minute it drops too low – STRESS hormones are pumped out (hence why some people wake at night or have trouble nodding off).  So this is important to understand.  Imagine your running your car and your are just holding the speed comfortably (cruising along efficiently) then all of a sudden you put your foot down to accelerate at top speed in gear 1!  This will eventually wear the engine out or your will fast run out of fuel! This is the number one reason diets fail – not to lack of will power…. but to exhaustion of will power!

Being sugar sensitive means you have unstable blood sugar, low serotonin and low beta endorphin. All three are out of balance. When this happens, you feel bad and you cannot will or medicate or talk your way into feeling better. Therapy, self-help or 12-step programs alone cannot heal you either because they do not heal the cause of your addiction: your sugar-sensitive biochemistry.

If you are sugar sensitive, what and when you eat has a huge impact on how you feel. Eating a diet high in sugar, refined flour, alcohol and junk foods makes your sugar sensitivity – and your moods – out of control.

When your sugar-sensitive body is in balance, life is good. When it is out of balance, life is miserable – Kathleen DesMaisons

Would you treat you car then way you treat your body?

OK – enough fo the lecture.  Jill, how the hell do I sort this out?

Well there are number of simple solutions to consider:

1. Ditch the #beigedeadfood for most of your day – even that so called ‘healthy’ cereal!
2. Start you first meal with a protein based breakfast
3. Increase protein and vegetable intake at your main meals
4. Consider snacking on nuts or some form of protein to manage cravings in the day and in-between meals when needed
5. Increase insulin sensitivity with resistance training, sleep and walking
6. avoid trying to out run sugar addiction – this over exercising can lead to even more sugar cravings!
7. Improve sleep time and quality
8. Improve how you deal with stress (yoga, walking, mediation, spending time with families, hobbies)
9. Avoid stimulants such as coffee and alcohol
10. Try drinking green tea
11. Use natural sweeteners such as Stevia and Xylitol to sweeten things while you balance your blood sugars
12. Even out your meals through a 12 hour window during the day.  Aim to fast over night for at least 12 hours.  ie. if dinner is at 6pm don’t eat again till breakfast at 6am where possible.
13. Use dark chocolate to help with cravings. Either eat a few squares or use 100% organic cocoa powder to make a hot drink – this helps balance brain chemistry
14. 5-10 mins power naps or mindfulness during the day to balance stress hormones

For every can or bottle of diet drink consumed each day, your chance of being overweight increases by 41%

Here is a great video by the fantastic Dr Robert. H. Lustig on the Bitter Truth about Sugar - I urge you to watch this!

Other things to consider:

• Artificial sweeteners found in low fat foods, diet drinks, gum etc can interfere with brain chemistry and blood sugar balance.  Leading to more cravings and more weight gain!  Ditch the diet drinks! These artifical sweeteners and drinks make your taste buds lazy and you crazy! If your tastes buds are over stimulated with these foods, then retrain with more natural sweet tastes.
• Berries, cashews, cinnamon, nut butters, fresh chili with your dark chocolate, fresh lemon, lime, ginger and mint in your water can all waken up dead taste bud – Naturally!
• Wheat and wheat products can in some people create the same situation.
• Alcohol and caffeine can also interfere with sleep, brain chemistry and sleep
• Lack of sunlight and Vitamin D (use D3 if supplementing) can contribute to cravings etc
• Try 5-HTP which is an amazing amino acid that can be converted to Serotonin – a feel good hormone
• Use BCAAs to help combat hunger and cravings in between meals or at night. Read my blog here.
• Add cinnamon to your hot cocoa, omelettes or cooking as this herb has been found to help with this
• Bake some sugar and wheat free muffins and cakes (my baking cook book is our very soon)
• I love to use a protein powder that’s chocolate flavoured to curb any sudden cravings in the daytime or smear some nut butter on a pear or apple.
• Agave nectar and honey are still sugars with a different name! – use xylitol or stevia to add to drinks and cooking.
• Don’t use fruit to try to curb cravings. Despite being healthy, they are full of natural sugar. By all means use fruit to wean yourself off unatural sweet #beigedeadfood but dont fall into the trap of snacking on it all day.  Berries, apples and pears are the lowest in sugars and so the best choices.Avoid smoothies as these contain vast amounts of sugar.
• Taking some gut friendly glutamine, pro-bitoics and extra fibre can also help your gut as you reduce your sugar intake. A healthy gut won’t cry out for food when it doesn’t need it!

You need to start to pay attention to your body and it’s feedback.

What about fasting?  I have heard this is good for weight loss?

Well let me put this straight. I believe there is merit in fasting and I will write another article on this very soon, but firstly manage your cravings and stress before embarking on fasting.  Fasting could add more issues if not done correctly or without first balancing your metabolism and hormones. Once this is done, then you can start to think about the merits of fasting.

I always say, get the big rocks right first before looking at the minutiae. stick with this and instead of the mentality of what you can’t have, instead think of all the you CAN have. Long term fat controlling is not going to happen unless you get good at sugar controlling first. It’s not fat that makes us fat.  It’s sugar along with stress, fat, poor sleep, #beigedeadfood and poor lifestyle choices.

Big love, small tummies

Jill – The Fat Controller (and former member of the Sweet FA)

p.s. if you want more reading on this topic I can highly recommend:

Potatoes not Prozac written by Kathleen DesMaisons.

More on artificial sweeteners

Hidden sugars

Why fructose is bad for your brain – increase in dementia

The FitPro Fitness Professional of the year!

I am completely over the moon to have been nominated for this award.

What’s more I have made it through to the semi-final and the public vote.  Now it’s my turn to ask for help!

I have been privileged to turn my struggles and story into a career to help others. To me it means it has all been for a reason!

So really my message is this:

If I can do this then anyone can!

The ending is not what really matters most but rather, it is the journey that is what is most important.  Becuase without the journey I would not be here to today doing what I am doing and helping others to do the same!

If you think I am a worthy winner of being Fitness Professional of the year then please do take a moment to vote for me.

Thank you to everyone who has supported and championed me!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill- The Fat Controller

Vote here - Semi-finalist for the Fitness Professional of the year!

Is this you?

www.monstersupplements.com

CODE: HICI15OFF
OFFER: 15% off all dumbbells


• I am too busy
• I have no time
• I never know what to eat
• I am confused
• I don’t like vegetables
• I don’t like exercise
• I have no willpower
• I am too tired!

If you are guilty of this then the bad news is YOU are holding yourself back!  It’s your fault you are not moving forwards.  In other words YOU are giving yourself permission to fail!

The good news is YOU can push yourself forwards and DO IT!

How?

Simple!  Make the decision to change your language.  Instead of stating a problem, ask a question and make a commitment to do it by changing the words.

For example, instead of:

I am too busy to fit in exercise

This states the problem and gives you permission to not seek a solution.  Try asking yourself:

How can I make time to exercise and feel great?

When you have thought about the solution and found a way around it, then state what you will do:

I WILL get up 30 minutes earlier to walk before work and I WILL use the stairs instead of the lift.

By eliminating words like try, hope, maybe, might (which are fluffy and non-committal) you will start to THINK differently and pretty soon the actions will follow……. and then what?

THE RESULTS WILL FOLLOW TOO!!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill – The Fat Controller

If you are finding you are getting hungry between meals then it could be that you need to increase protein and/or fibre (vegetables) at meal times to help keep hunger at bay. For example, if your usual breakfast is cereal or toast consider having a poached egg or omelette instead. Or if your usual lunch is a sandwich then consider a big chicken salad. I have plenty of recipes in my fat controlling cook book to help inspire you. Look out for it coming soon!

However, there are days when you just feel plain hungry regardless of what you have eaten at breakfast which can be down to a number of things! So here are some of my top tips on how to deal with hunger between meals without it derailing your fat controlling efforts:

1. Green tea. This has massive health benefits. Drink during the course of the morning to help manage cravings, mood and motivation. There are plenty of different flavours and varieties to try. However if you have sleep issues, then I recommend not consuming it past lunch time.
2. Hot Cocoa drink. This has a number of health benefits but mostly it has a really positive effect on cravings. I like to have mine with a little Xylitol to sweeten and sometimes topped with a little unsweetened almond milk. Again if you are having sleep issues consider reducing green tea and cocoa or just having it up until lunch time.
3. A couple of squares of dark chocolate. Just enough to give you that melt in the mouth taste and a boost in beneficial brain chemicals. I like to have it with a small handful of brazils or almonds to add protein and a feeling of fullness. Often this sees me through until the next meal!
4. Water. This is a brilliant appetite suppressor and is often be a cause of many peoples in-between meal hunger. I suggest clean filtered water where possible (such as Eco-pure water filters, mention me when ordering for a 10% discount). I like to add a slice of lemon and/or lime to increase the alkalinity and health benefits of the drink.
5. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs). These are brilliant for helping deal with hunger. 5-20g per day based on your needs. For hunger and cravings try 5g BCAAs pre-workout, 5g BCAAs post-workout, 5g BCAAs mid-afternoon or 5g BCAAs before bed. Spreading them out will help manage hunger in-between meals.  Read more about this fat loss gem here
6. A 10 minute Fitstop Workout. Or 1 minute of intense moves such as Squat jumps or running up and down the stairs. This can act as a brilliant appetite suppressor and mood enhancer. The release of hormones will actually suppress hunger while at the same time ramping up the metabolism. You could intersperse you day with them to not only increase your metabolism but also manage your cravings and appetite! For ten minute workouts that can do the same, check out my new Fitstop DVD!
7. High fibre veggies such as cucumber or celery. Due to their high fibre and water content these will make you feel fuller and you can’t beat a good old crunch. These foods take more energy to digest than they supply. So not only are they filling and can help keep hunger at bay, they supply nutrients and can actually help burn more calories.
8. A teaspoon or 2 of nut butter. Just a mouthful of this can really help manage tummy growls and is especially good when you let yourself get hungry before dinner. I use this before sometimes to help me sleep through the night. A small handful of nuts can do the same too. Full of minerals and the right healthy fats to help you feel satisfied.  Try it on a stick of celery or chopped apple or pear.
9. Frozen berries with xylitol and coconut milk. A sweet tasting treat with fibre and high taste satisfaction. Simply defrost from the freezer or get fresh berries. Place them in a bowl, sprinkle over the sweetener and if desired add some almond or coconut milk.
10. A fibre supplement. Either in tablet form or as a powder to mix in water or in food. Physillium is a good option to add to smoothies etc. Extra fibre helps slow the emptying of the gut, plus makes you feel fuller and lessens the rise in blood sugar and so giving you more sustained fullness and appetite control.
11. Xylitol-based sugar-free gum. This can really help curb appetite and cravings. Most common gums have nasty sweeteners in which can, in some people, increase cravings for sugary foods so use with caution.
12. A walk, Yoga, Pilates, phone a friend or listening to some meditation. Both lower the hunger hormone Ghrelin in the short-term and can help enhance the mood.
13. Miso soup. You can get Miso soup from most health food stores and this can be a great tool to help between meals. Also becuase if is fermented it is really good for your gut. You may need to drink more water due to the higher salt content but it can really help take the edge of hunger between meals.
14. Protein shake or bar. I love to make my smoothies with chocolate protein and extra cocoa powder. Plus I like to add fibre such as avocado and spinach. Experiment with nut butters or flax seeds to help increase the fibre and healthful fats. You could make your own protein bars or you can buy them in most supermarkets or health food stores too.

If you have any useful tips you like to use, then why not comment on this post or share it on Facebook!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill  – The Fat Controller

Are you to busy to stop to eat?

Do you find it difficult to know what snacks won’t derail your fat controlling efforts?

Confused about what snacks to choose?

Or do you struggle to find any fat controlling snacks when out and about?

Healthy ‘v’ fat controlling snacks

There are plenty of ‘healthy’ snacks that you could choose from:

• fruit
• crackers
• low-calorie snack bars
• cereal bars
• low calorie crisps
• rice cakes
• low-fat flavoured yoghurts
• bagels
• popcorn
• breadsticks

Why these snacks could be making you fatter?

Despite many of these options being low calorie, it’s the type of calorie that is key to fat controlling and long term fat loss.

‘Healthy’ snack options tend to be higher in carbohydrates or sugars. This gives them high taste but often without the fat and so therefore low calorie.  Which sounds good right?

CAUTION!  It’s not as good as it sounds!

Let me simplify things a little. Fat controlling relies primarily on keeping two hormones in check. Insulin and cortisol. These powerful hormones are essential for life but when they are both hanging around in excessive amounts there is no hope of being a fat controller! No matter how low calorie you go!

The biggest influence you can have over these hormones is with the food choices you make on a regular basis. When constantly snacking on foods that stimulate insulin (even if low calorie and low fat) it makes it largely impossible to burn fat. What’s more, excessive blood sugar disturbance from eating this ‘healthy’ but often #beigedeadfood can create a see saw effect between insulin and cortisol. This combination not only encourages fat storage, elevates stress hormones but also stops fat burning from happening at all!

So how do you control these two hormones?

The most potent fat burning combo?  Protein and fibre!

It is becoming more widely accepted that for better energy, mental focus and fat burning it’s better to base meals on protein and fibre. The same is true for snacks if you want to maintain or achieve long term fat loss. Protein and fibre will not only help prevent excessive blood sugar swings, but they will also encourage fat to be burnt and muscle to be maintained. The perfect scenario for fat controlling.

So what is wrong with low calorie ‘healthy’ snacks then?

Well, here’s the thing. Low calorie, high carbohydrate foods generally don’t fill you up. They are low in fibre compared to their sugar or starch content and contain very little protein. Not great news for blood sugar control. Low fat items tend to have their fat content replaced with starches, fillers and sugars to give it taste but making them even worse. With barely any fat or fibre, the food is processed or digested quickly leaving sugar to shamelessly enter the blood stream in excessive amounts.

In order to cope with this scenario, the body releases the powerful hormone insulin to remove excess sugar from the blood.  Not only does this leave us with low blood sugar and then high cortisol (stress) levels, it has no choice but to fill the fat cells with the excess sugar if the energy is not immediately required.

And so this cycle goes on day after day with fat cells getting fatter and fatter.

BUT!!! worry not, The Fat Controller is here to share with you my top twenty fat controlling snacks that you can buy or carry around with you:

1. Hard boiled eggs (boil up a batch every few days)
2. Nuts (small handful)
3. 3-5 brazil nuts and 2 squares of dark chocolate
4. Nut butter and veggies/low sugar fruits (apples, pears)
5. Berries and plain low-fat greek yoghurt (avoid the flavoured varieties)
6. Protein shakes or smoothies (whey, rice, pea, hemp etc)
7. Cottage cheese and fruit, berries or chopped veggies
8. Tinned tuna
9. Fat controlling carrot and ginger cake
10. Beef jerky (most supermarkets, including M&S and BP petrol stations stock this)
11. Turkey balls
12. Crustless quiches
13. Shop bought or homemade protein bars
14. Sliced red pepper tortillas
15. Protein scones
16. Protein yoghurt
17. Fat controlling apple and cinnamon muffins
18. Pre-cooked chicken legs
19. Chocolate protein pancake

All it requires is a little forward thinking.  For example:

A fat controller will always have fat loss snacks in their bag, draw or car

A fat controller will always think several meals ahead

A fat controller will always check out places nearby for potential fat controlling snacks

A fat controller will spend time each week prepping, planning and sorting fat loss snacks and tupperware pots or making sure they have some in the store cupboard

A fat controller will always cook extra for the freezer or next day

A fat controller will base their snacks on protein and fibre

A fat controller knows that smart snacking will prevent overeating later

And finally….. A fat controller also knows that if they get caught out then it’s no big drama so long as they don’t feel guilt and move on.

I wrote poem with this in mind.  Dear Fat Controller……..

For more ideas on snacks and fat loss cooking, check out my new cook book out in December!  The Fat Controllers Autumn/Winter Cookery Book. In the meantime let me know your fat loss questions and issues!  I would love to help!

Big love, small tummies!

Jill – The Fat Controller

Want to burn fat?

Want to feel energised?

Want tohave masses of energy and look great?

Well read on because you can AND what’s more you can do this without having to go hungry!

This may sound like a marketing gimmick but I can assure it isn’t.  Actually this is exactly how our ancestors would have lived.

How many steaks can you eat in one sitting?  But………could you eat a whole packet of biscuits in one sitting?

What’s wrong with the current dietary recommendations?

66% of people who start a diet end up fatter!

Well when you look at the food pyramid and more recently at the the eat well food plate you can see that we are encouraged to base all our meals on starchy carbohydrates and wholegrains.  I like to call these foods beige, dead foods #beigedeadfood.  In the main these foods are beige and devoid of much nutritional value.  There can be exceptions (the plant based sources that are unprocessed) such as potatoes and oats.  And these exceptions can be OK for some people and not always others.  You see these foods are promoted as ‘healthy’ and for someone of normal body weight you can argue that they are.  But for someone trying to burn fat or keep their weight under control, these foods can be the very thing keeping you fat or making you fatter!

So what’s the problem?  They are low in calories right?

In the main, yes these #beigedeadfoods are generally low in calories when on their own.  There are a couple of problems however that we need to understand first:

1. Whilst wholegrain bread for example can be thought of as ‘healthy’ it tends to eaten along with higher calorie foods such as margerine, mayonnaise, fatty meats, cheeses, butter etc creating a fat storing metabolic disaster
2. The nature of these foods are that they are low in protein, water and fibre relative to how much sugar they have.  In other words, they take very little processing by the body, are not very filling and can often leave you wanting more!  They play havoc with blood sugar and often cravings and energy levels later on.

If you tend to crave a particular food and then find you can eat lots of this particular food, the chances are it is causing a very large insulin spike.  This is not great news for anyone wanting to burn fat!  Often this food will fall under the starchy carbohydrate banner!

So I need to go on a low carbohydrate diet then?

Not necessarily.  But, let’s understand carbohydrates a little more first. We can’t survive without protein or fat. But we could survive without carbohydrate.  So your body can generate glucose for the brain from other sources.  We need to understand the different carbohydrates and that we are all VERY different. We have unique metabolisms and are exposed to different environments etc. and so we all react differently to different forms of energy. Hence why we all know someone who can eat bread all day and still stay lean! (yes I hate them too!)

Not all carbohydrates are equal!

There are two distinct categories for carbohydrates,  Fibrous and starchy:

1. Fibrous is plant based and mostly grows above the ground.  Fibrous veggies are you best friend for health and fat loss as it’s higher in fibre and much lower in sugars.
2. Starchy carbohydrates tend to be beige, lower in nutrients and lower in fibre compared to it’s sugar content.  These are NOT the best choices if you want to burn fat!

1 cup of spinach contains around 7 calories compared to 1 cup of white flour which contains over 400!

1. Base all your meals on colourful vegetables.  By having 50% or more of your plant plant based, fibrous vegetables you will feel fuller for longer and have less room for other starches.  Fibrous veggies contain much more water and nutrients per serving size and so feed the body what it needs leaving it satisfied and functioning well.
2. Use protein at each meal for satiety.  Opt for lean cuts of meat or use egg whites to make huge omelettes.  Eat until you are full!
3. Include some healthy fats at each meal to increase taste and fullness.  Opt for coconut oil, olive oil, organic butters and other unrefined, unprocessed oils
4. Take a fish oil supplement each day.  Fat can help you burn fat and this type of essential fatty acid helps the cells be more responsive to hormonal signals from the body such as the ones that control appetite and fat burning.
5. Don’t drink your calories.  Milky designer coffees can start from 100 calories right up to 600 and can easily add up.
6. Save alcohol for special occasions.  Your liver will stop burning fat while it has to detox the alcohol from the system for anything up to a few days after!
7. Drink plenty of clear fluids such as green tea, water, herbal teas.
8. Fast over night.  By fasting during the night you give your metabolism a rest and allow your body to re-sensitise itself to fat storing and hunger hormones.  Start with 12 hours without food overnight.  When you  have mastered this with good sleep and appetite control then increase up to 14, then to 16 (I advise using BCAAs, fibre and drinks such as cocoa and green tea to keep stress levels down)
9. Sleeping around 7.5 – 8 hours a night with quality sleep!  This is prime fat burning time, especially if fasting 12 hours or more over night.  This stops cravings for starchy carbs, sugar and coffee during the day too!  Break your fast with a protein rich meal.
10. Use a protein supplement either in meals or between to increase protein intake. There are loads of different types to suit everyone.  From animal based to plant based such as pea or rice protein.  You can add it to soups, make smoothies, drink shakes or make protein snacks.

Finally, by filling your boots of lower calorie but high in nutrient based foods you will automatically eat less calories without even trying.  Your should feel satisfied all day with minimal cravings or energy issues and feel fully in control of your eating.