Paula’s tips for losing weight

Do it slowly. Slow and steady wins the race when it comes to fat loss. Weight loss of approximately 1kg per week is a realistic and sustainable goal. Never deprive yourself. Find ways of eating really nice food, “like in the book”. Always reach for water before food. Chances are you’re not that hungry, just dehydrated. Aim to drink two litres of water per day. Don’t skip meals. Use low-calorie cooking sprays.

Cut out processed foods as much as possible. Sit down and eat, set the table and eat slowly to truly enjoy your food. Limit your alcohol consumption when you are trying to lose weight. Use a smaller dinner plate. Eat slowly. Stop to think before deciding whether to have a dessert or piece of cake. Make healthy food choices. Keep a food diary, Paula adds, taking out her new food diary from her handbag, which she has just started. “I write down what I eat every day. It sounds a bit obsessive but it has become a habit with me and I can look back over it and say, ‘Right, You had pasta yesterday. You won’t have it today’. Watch your portion size. A portion of protein should be the same size as your fist for dinner or half the size of your fist for lunch and make up onequarter of your plate. Carbs should make up another quarter and the rest of the plate should be vegetables or salad. Eat properly. — What is eating properly? “Eating unprocessed, homecooked food. No additives. No hidden fats. No extra salt. Cook the meals yourself. Go to your local shop or supermarket and get the raw foods. It is nothing to do with will power. Will power will get you started but only by eating properly can you continue to do it. The media has told us that we don’t have the time to cook our own food. We have the time. The big thing is to plan ahead. At weekends I would cook for the week ahead.” — How do you keep the weight off? “It is the hardest part and that is my next book without a doubt. I am actually keeping a journal on it. “I have never eaten normally. I have always either been on a diet or I have eaten everything.”