FAQs

I have eaten my main meal but am still hungry, what do I do?

The non-starchy vegetables in your main meal contain very few kilojoules. If you are still hungry and don’t feel that you can wait until the next snack, try filling yourself a little more with an additional serving of the following vegetables: asparagus, green beans, bean sprouts, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, peppers (all colours), carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, mushrooms, onions, peas, radishes, spinach, squash, tomato, baby marrow.

Try to still eat something at breakfast even if it is smaller than the amount suggested in your meal planner. If you are rushed for time, start to break the habit by waking a little earlier and making time for breakfast. If you don’t have an appetite in the morning, try to eat something small and over time, your morning appetite will slowly improve.

Try not to intentionally skip meals, however if you do find you have missed a meal, then just wait until the next snack or meal opportunity and eat the usual amount.

Instead of soft drinks — even diet soft drinks — choose drinks with lower kilojoules, which include water, iced tea, flavoured water and diluted fruit juice (e.g. ½ glass fruit juice, ½ glass water).

Strawberries contain relatively few kilojoules. Keep a small container of strawberries in the fridge and try to limit yourself to the occasional strawberry until the next meal. Alternatively, try having a glass of ice-cold tomato juice or a small bowl of vegetable soup that contains only non-starchy vegetables such as: asparagus, green beans, broccoli, cabbage, peppers (all colours), carrots, cauliflower, celery, mushrooms, onions, peas, spinach, squash, tomato and baby marrow.

Try to make water your preferred drink throughout the day. Make a habit of keeping a bottle of water or glass of water on hand and drink frequently. Include at least one glass of water with most meals and snacks. If you are drinking adequate amounts of water, your urine should be a pale colour. If your urine is consistently darker in colour then you need to drink more water.

Your body may require more soluble fibre and/or water. Try adding a few tablespoons of bran to your morning high fibre cereal and ensure that you are drinking water frequently throughout the day. You may also want to consider taking a soluble fibre supplement, which may be purchased through a pharmacy or health shop.

Try to eat some of the meal but accept that you may not be able to finish it. It is important to try to eat regularly and to eat in a healthy and balanced manner even if the amounts are quite small. If you are concerned, speak to your doctor.

This often happens after a New Year’s resolution! The sun is shining and the weather is warm, but when we head back to work we often lose this momentum and before we know it, we are back to our old habits. Here are some tips to help you stay on track:Ensure that the changes you introduce are realistic. Moving to a daily exercise programme and very restrictive diet isn’t fun and most people would have trouble doing this! Choose an exercise that you really enjoy or that you can do with friends, one that you can do indoors if you need to because of the weather.

Write up your goals and put them somewhere you can see them – this keeps them front of mind and you are more likely to stick to them.

Get friends and family involved as this makes it more social and fun! Not to mention a little bit of healthy competition.
Put it in your diary like an appointment so that you don’t miss a session because you don’t have time.
Get organised! By packing your gear the night before you can prevent having any issues looking for your runners first thing in the morning.

Disclaimer

The content was developed for iNova Pharmaceuticals by Chanelle Retief, a qualified Dietitian. The content and advice is that of Chanelle Retief and not that of iNova Pharmaceuticals. For further information, consult your health care provider.

What is the best exercise for weight loss?
  • Finding what you enjoy is one of the best things you can do to get motivated about exercising and physical activity, if you engage in exercise and physical activity more, you will burn more calories, and hence encourage weight loss. So, find something you find fun and go for it!
  • Group exercise has been shown to encourage more consistency when it comes to engaging with physical activity and exercise6 it also keeps you committed, if you exercise more, you lose more weight, so find something fun to do with friends and keep consistent with that activity, e.g. Padel with the girls on Tuesdays and Fridays.
  • Something that almost everybody has access to and something that is incredibly functional, as well as a good overall workout for the body, is walking! This is a great place to start on any weight-loss journey, a brisk-paced, but comfortable walk that gets the heart rate up is a simple yet effective tool for weight-loss.
  • A well programmed strength training programme, hiking or trail walking, swimming, cycling, weekly ball sports with friends, are all fantastic options too.
  • Being generally active throughout your day is very important too and can contribute greatly to weight loss. Try to stay active around the house and at work.
  • Being generally active over the course of your day is important! 30 minutes a day of physical activity or exercise is ideal to maintain general health2 but in order to continue to lose weight, you can and should try to do a bit more, try to start here and progress your intensity of exercise and physical activity as you become fitter and stronger, be more proactive about menial house tasks, keep your body moving, motion is lotion!
  • Consult with a health care professional or biokineticist for advice on what type of exercises are appropriate before starting to prevent injury.
  • To start, ideally strength training (resistance training) 2-3 x a week (build to 4 x a week), cardiovascular training 2-3 x a week (30 minutes)2. Don’t overdo it! If you do too much too fast in the beginning, you won’t feel great, you will feel exhausted and you could get demotivated, especially if you are starting from a position where you haven’t exercised before.
  • Build up gradually, if you’re feeling good, go a bit more, if not, no problem, be patient, build up gradually.
  • When performing strength training (resistance training), our muscle fibers are contracting and relaxing (with a bicep curl for example), our bodies use calories and fat stores to be able to contract our muscle tissues (in simple terms), hence when strength training (resistance training), our bodies are burning fats, helping weight management.5
  • As our muscle size increases it needs more effort overall to be able to fatigue it and therefore draw more calories and fats to be able to continue to contract and perform movement, so it benefits our weight loss goal if we get stronger! 5
  • Physical activity is great for improving blood pressure, as well as reducing your risk of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs).3 Furthermore, it assists greatly in improving cholesterol levels and assisting with insulin level management. 4
  • It takes several weeks to see any noticeable change in muscle size and tone once you have started any strength training routines, especially if you are starting to exercise for the first time. Your muscle tissues will first gain strength, then will start to grow in size and tone.
  • Building muscle involves the repair of micro traumas in your muscle fibers. This is a complicated process, but can be understood in simpler terms:
  • When you lift weights (or do body weight exercises), your muscles endure tiny injuries throughout their fibers. Then, when you rest your muscles, your body begins repairing your damaged muscle cells.2
  • The repair process involves fusing torn muscle fibers back together, as well as laying down new proteins within each muscle cell. Your muscles become bigger and stronger as a result of the repair process.7
  • Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS), is as a result of microscopic tearing and damage to muscle fibers when exercising a particular muscle and can result in some tenderness and stiffness.2
  • This is Normal! DOMS is a critical part of the strengthening process that our muscles undergo, it can be expected to last between 24 and 72 hours (1 – 3 days) and can even last up to 96 – 120 hours (3-5 days).2
  • Here-in lies the importance of a structured exercise programme with guidance regarding periodisation of training to best manage DOMS post strength workout.
  • Remember to start from a realistic base and build from there, attempting to walk/run a 5 km with little training will likely demotivate you if you don’t finish the 5 km, start with 1 km for example.
  • On the other hand, feeling continuous muscular/joint pain whilst exercising is not good, and can indicate a chronic or acute injury. If this is the case, rather stop. Consult a Health care professional 2, such as a Biokineticist.
  • Consulting a Biokineticist will allow you to establish the musculoskeletal areas of your body that will need more strengthening and developing than others, as well as what type of stretches are best suited to you and your body and what it goes through on your day to day, all bodies are different.
  • It’s important to remember how important strength and cardiovascular training is when it comes to the health of our heart, our lungs, our blood vessels,8 as well as being incredibly beneficial for multiple other aspects of your mental and social well-being4,8. In other words, it’s not just about looking good on the outside, it’s also about getting healthier on the inside.
  • Strength training can sometimes be tough, but in order to realise the full benefit of health outcomes our bodies can achieve, strength training for maintaining weight and staying healthy will always be important in the long term.
  • Start small, if you attempt too much too soon, you will likely feel overly sore and overly tired, your body won’t be benefiting from this, and you will underperform in the short to medium term. This will likely demotivate you to continue. So, start with realistic targets, these can always be progressed.
  • Staying motivated about exercising and physical activity is much easier when you are doing something you enjoy! Find something you enjoy like hiking/swimming/padel tennis. You are more likely to continue with it if you are having fun whilst doing it and enjoying yourself.
  • Group activities and group exercise have been shown to be great way of increasing physical performance outcomes whilst exercising6. Being committed to a weekly group activity like Padel tennis every Tuesday, or the park run every Saturday morning can also help you remain committed.
  • Finding yourself a goal or cause for wanting to get physically strong and healthier overall can be a great way to want to stay committed to exercising and strength training. For example, being able to play with your grandkids, becoming pain free whilst performing activities, or training to enter a fun run.
  • Pack your exercise things the night before, write down some realistic goals like step count targets or weight targets and remember to be realistic!
  • Consider a standing desk! Standing work stations have been shown to be a great way of improving muscular strength of your pelvic stabilisers, as well as being beneficial for your posture1.
  • Take the stairs instead of the elevator and take 2 steps at a time if comfortable.
  • Park further away from the shops to get a bit more steps in!
  • Small daily habits like going for a walk first thing after you get back home, or taking the dog for a walk every second day, all the small things add up!

Speak to your health care provider before attempting any exercise, to ensure they are safe and appropriate for you.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this video is based on the professional opinion of Taylor Dodge, qualified Biokineticist, and is intended solely for informational purposes. It is not meant to replace professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Consult health care providers for personalised advice and treatment options related to the specific health concerns.