Style How to look stylish when it’s cold Life Our coach is right here!
Life coach Kirsten Long advises on love, work and more.
Allure Tatler,
Coming from St Petersburg, Russia, I learnt very early on how to layer thanks to its icy winters. Think silk undershirt, blouse, jersey, coat and scarf. You want to look like Doctor Zhivago, but not too fancy or formal.
work from a black base I often start my outfit with black trousers or stockings, and add a layer of colour to liven it up. Camel and red coats – or details – go particularly well with black. They help prevent the look from appearing too heavy.
mix it up Winter is perfect for mixing textures, as there are so many to choose from. I love the look of a fauxfur bomber jacket with a woollen skirt, for example. I also like to keep textures in the same colour family: forest green, deep teal and navy.
keep your coat open If I’m wearing an overcoat, I tend to not close it (unless it’s absolutely freezing!). Doing this adds another layer of style when people can see your belt or jersey under your coat.
stay down I usually wear flat, durable boots – anything with treads or thick soles, which are practical and balance the bulk of the coat. If I do wear heels, I make sure that they’re chunky, as they feel substantial in bad weather.
prepare for glare I wear giant sunglasses to protect my eyes from the winter glare. They also make any outfit more glamorous.
Q“I have housemates and although I like them, I’m struggling to set boundaries. They wear my clothes, put their laundry with mine and eat my food. I have to live with them, so I don’t want to make things awkward, but I don’t know what to do.”
Kilojoule restriction makes you thin
“If your food intake is reduced to a level where macronutrients (protein, fat and carbs) are lacking, then the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) bound in them go, too,” says dietitian Lorraine Mccreary. “To defend itself against this ‘famine’, the body slows its metabolic rate to preserve nutrients, lean tissue and fat. When normal eating resumes, weight gain is swift, and your body composition changes so that you store more fat than you did before.”
All smoothies are good for you
“If fruits and vegetables are blended, they’re OK because the pulp, and therefor the fibre, isn’t lost. But if fruit alone is juiced, it’s simple sugar, which doesn’t fill you up,” explains nutrition scientist Gaynor Bussell. “We need to limit simple sugars to 5-6 tsp a day, including juice. Then there’s portion control; you couldn’t eat two carrots, a banana, 20 blueberries and a mango, but you drink it in 60 seconds. It takes our brain 20 minutes to register fullness, so you won’t feel satisfied, either. Make your own occasionally, include veg, and only have 150ml.”
Smaller breakfast = smaller waist
“A bowl of cereal has hardly any fibre or protein, so you’ll be starving by mid-morning,” says dietitian Helen Bond. “Protein at breakfast curbs your appetite and revs up your body’s fat-burning abilities thanks to a process called thermogenesis. Because you have to work harder to break down protein, this generates heat and burns kilojoules. A woman needs 45g protein daily, and one egg is 7g. Other good sources are milk, yoghurt and oily fish.”
Low-kilojoule snacks are healthy
“Snacks like rice cakes and cereal bars provide little goodness. Often, fat or sugar is replaced with artificial ingredients to give the right texture and taste, plus choosing diet options can mean you end up on a sugar/fat see-saw. When you take out fat, you want more sugar, take out sugar and you may eat more fat, as that’s where flavour comes from. If you’re trying to lose weight, cutting kilojoules doesn’t have to mean diet snacks: 25 grapes, a banana or an oatcake with peanut butter are all 41kj, too,” says Gaynor.
5Carbs must go
“These have been demonised, but they’re important – and gram for gram, carbs contain half the kilojoules of fat. The recent Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition recommended women eat 30g fibre a day, and the average woman falls short by nearly half – remove carbs, and you’ll miss by far. Fibre is important for gut health, and a lack of it is even linked to cancer,” warns Helen. “Avoid white, processed carbs, but eat brown rice, rye, spelt, buckwheat, quinoa and barley for fibre, B vitamins and phytochemicals. Fill half of your plate with vegetables, a quarter with healthy protein and a quarter with wholegrain carbs.”
Supplements replace food
“Some people need supplements, but most of us can get everything we need from a balanced, varied diet,” explains Helen. You can’t pop a pill and replace everything. Vegetarians or vegans could benefit from B12 and omega-3, and almost all of us lack vitamin D, but otherwise they’re used to supplement your diet, not be a substitute for it.