5 simple diet rules

Eat regularly Eating regularly one of the most important aspects as this will help to keep your blood sugar levels constant. And keeping your blood sugar levels constant will ensure that you have constant energy, no cravings, stable mood and it increases your metabolism (how much energy your body needs in a day) as well as allows your body to tap into its fat stores. Regular eating means eating every 3-4 hours. 

  Start early It is vital that your body gets its first dose of energy within an hour of getting up and definitely before any morning exercise. This is because of the "overnight fast" that has occurred. There is only a little energy left in your body which will sustain you for a short time. If you do not need eat at this point your body will need to make its own energy, which it will take from either muscle or fat. Muscle is generally the choice if your blood sugar levels are very low. 

  Eat a food that converts into sugar every time you eat Although the general belief is that "sugar" is bad for us, our bodies actually need sugar (glucose) as the main unit of energy. "Sugar" however comes in many forms, and it is best to keep our intake of simple sugar low (table sugar, sweets, treats etc). The foods that do convert into sugar in our body are starches (bread, crackers, cereals, rice, pasta, potatoes, and starchy vegetables), fruit and dairy (milk and yoghurt). Choosing from these foods for each meal or snack will allow your body to have "immediate" energy available. From a health and blood sugar control perspective you should choose the higher fibre, lower GI carbohydrates as well as add some low-fat protein or healthy fat to the meal/snack. 

When you eat, eat small quantities Because you are eating more often in the day your meals and snacks should always be relatively small. Meals can be 2 units plus the protein or fat (for example 2 slices of bread or 1 cup of starch) and snacks can be 1 to 2 units (for example a fruit and a yoghurt or 3-6 provita). 

Learn to understand your body’s signals The first signal that you need to "hear" is hunger. There are 2 hungers though – stomach hunger and mouth hunger. You need to learn to feed only the stomach hunger with food! The second signal is the satiety signal – the signal that tells you when to stop eating. Being satisfied is very different to being too full! These signals will come back if you start eating regularly.