A recent survey of fifty of my correspondents, all of whom weighed over 85 kilos, revealed some very interesting results, and I would like to share them with you. 50% see food as a good friend, a source of comfort when they have problems. 40% of European women surveyed felt the need to be big, funny, and jolly as a means of hiding their true feelings about being overweight. Many readers had been on more than five different diets and 80% could stick to a low calorie diet for up to ten days, which says a lot for their self control. 80% wanted to lose weight for themselves, mainly because they were worried about their health. 15% wanted to lose weight for their husbands or children. 5% were only trying to lose weight because of outside pressures. 70% said that they had never been to a gym and would not go.

We also asked those who had successfully lost weight and had reached their target weight what advice they would give to others wishing to lose weight too — these are just a few of their comments.

• Don’t judge yourself on your weight.

• Give yourself confidence — don’t be down on yourself because you have a weight problem. Accept yourself as you are and move on.

• Write down the food snacks that cause you to overeat — and stop eating when you stop tasting the food.

• Don’t spend time with people who make you feel negative about yourself.

• Snacking makes you bigger.

• Losing weight is gaining health and energy.

• Spend time analysing why you eat — if it is stress, buy a calming music CD.

• Don’t judge yourself harshly because you have extra weight.

• Respect food because it can be like a drug.

• Give yourself unconditional love.

• Just cutting out fizzy drinks, chips, and chocolates helped me.

• People take you at your own estimation so give out vibes that you are attractive and clever.

• Taking up aqua aerobics helped me to lose.

Recipe of the Week

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Serves 6

Ingredients

48 g cornstarch

790 ml canned Oriental or chicken stock

120 ml vinegar

100 g sugar

900 g boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into cubes

2 small green or red bell peppers, cut into 5 cm strips

2 medium carrots, sliced

450 g unsweetened pineapple chunks, drained

1.5 kg hot cooked rice

Method

Combine first 4 ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Set aside. Heat a heavy non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Stir-fry chicken 5-8 minutes, in batches if necessary, or until browned. Set chicken aside. Stir cornstarch mixture and add to skillet. Cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Return chicken to pan. Add pepper, carrot, and pineapple. Reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Serve over rice.

Ask Alva

I exercise regularly 6 days a week. (30 minutes cycling, 25 minutes treadmill and some stretches). I really work out for a minimum 1 hour each day but all in vain for I have not lost that much weight. I haven’t eaten sugar or ice cream for more than a year. I was on a low calorie diet for a year but now I have given that up. Please tell me why I am not losing weight. Ahmed Saif

I often receive letters like yours, and I know that it is sometimes very difficult to lose weight, even when you are trying very hard. But you have to stop and ask yourself why you find it so hard. First off, calorie-controlled diets are not good for you. In fact, they are counter-productive. When you go on a low calorie diet, you put your body into a state of distress, and although you might lose weight at the time, the body has a natural reaction after you start eating normally again. The body just takes back what it has lost, and the end result for many people is that they put the weight back on, and sometimes more. You need to start to redevelop healthy eating habits, and if you e-mail to: [email protected] [email protected] I will send you a copy of my Healthy Eating Guide as this will set you in the right direction again.