Features

Health: Carrying some extra baggage?

30 Nov 2012 by BusinessTraveller
Fat-flyer
A jet-set lifestyle can wreak havoc on your waistline. As a new year dawns, Sally Brown suggests ways to fight the flab. Easy access to unlimited free food and drink is the opposite of what you need when you’re trying to lose weight. If you’re a frequent traveller, it can feel like the world is out to sabotage your attempts to stave off the flab. “Sticking to a healthy diet is simple – if you live alone and work from home,” says nutritionist Ian Marber, author of How Not To Get Fat. “For anyone else, particularly those who travel a lot, it’s a challenge.”

About 42 per cent of men and 32 per cent of women are now overweight, according to a recent survey by the NHS (Statistics on Obesity, Physical Activity and Diet, England). Another survey found that 38 per cent of men said they’d give up a year or more of their life in exchange for a slimmer physique. Dietitian Nigel Denby is seeing more and more top executives at his Mayfair and Harley Street clinics. “They’re aware that their lifestyle has an impact on their health,” he says. We all know now that being overweight puts you at increased risk of health problems such as heart disease and diabetes.

Staying slim in today’s food-abundant society is a challenge for anyone, but frequent travellers face more obstacles than most. Whether it’s the onboard tuck shop or the working buffet lunch, it’s easy to graze your way through the day. Corporate entertaining is another hazard – studies show that the more people you eat with, the more calories you consume, says Professor Marion Hetherington from the University of Leeds. “You eat the most – up to 70 per cent more – when in a same-sex group,” she says.

Jet lag also plays a part, as sleep deprivation affects the body’s ability to regulate appetite. Research by Dr Shahrad Taheri from the University of Birmingham has found it takes only two nights of having two or three hours less sleep than normal to result in 15 per cent more ghrelin (a hormone that boosts appetite), and 15 per cent less leptin (the “full-up” hormone) being produced, leaving you feeling hungry all the time.

Eating while you work is another culprit – have lunch in front of your laptop and you’ll eat twice as many snacks later in the day than you would if you left the office to eat, according to a study from Bristol University. “If you don’t pay attention while you eat, it doesn’t get encoded as a memory, which is why you eat more later,” Hetherington says. It’s also easy to miss “full-up” signals when you’re distracted and eat too much – research shows we take in 14 per cent more calories if we eat while watching TV.

Lack of routine is another factor. “Consistency is crucial when it comes to staying slim and healthy. It’s what you do the majority of the time that counts,” Marber says. Finding a few simple rules that work for you and sticking to them is the key, says Denby. “You can’t change your lifestyle but you can find a way of making it work for you,” he says.

One that works for lots of people, says diet guru Judith Wills, author of Escape The Fat Trap For Life, is cutting out “white” stuff.  “Avoid white rice, white bread, white pasta, and other refined carbohydrates such as biscuits, pastries, pies and cakes,” she says. “Nutritionally, you get nothing from them but calories.”

“If you have a choice, opt for the three S’s”, says Denby: “Soup, salad or sushi are all good choices.” Keep water by your wineglass and drink more from that. And, as we make better food choices when we’re not starving, consider pre-eating before big events. “I order an omelette and salad from room service, so when I go out, I’m more likely to lay off the canapés,” Marber says.

Small changes can make a difference over time – create even a small “energy gap” (by taking in fewer calories than you burn off) most days of the week, and you will lose weight. Research has shown that losing just 10 per cent of your body weight (for example, 21lbs if you weigh 15 stone) reduces your risk of diabetes by 58 per cent, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, and reduces the risk of several cancers.

For a diet consultation with Nigel Denby, email [email protected]. For Ian Marber, email [email protected]

Seven ways to weigh less

The lowdown on today’s most talked-about diets, with expert verdicts from Judith Wills

5:2

The theory Five days of the week, you eat normally. On two non-consecutive days, limit your food intake to 600 calories (500 for women). As well as reducing your weekly calorie intake to result in a minimum 1lb fat loss, it may bring health benefits. Fasting has been shown to reduce cholesterol and blood pressure. There is also research that suggests intermittent calorie-restriction can stave off ageing by reducing levels of growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and switching cells from growth to repair mode. Not recommended for diabetics.

What you eat For best results, pack as many nutrients into food choices on fast days – boiled eggs, vegetable soup, grilled chicken breast or fish and steamed vegetables are all good choices. It’s up to you whether you eat them in one meal or spread them out throughout the day. Drink lots of water – it’s easy to get dehydrated when you’re not eating much.

Expert’s verdict “Works very well for many people and may be ideal for a business traveller who can find two days a week when it’s possible to eat little without offending anyone,” Wills says. “Nutrient lack isn’t a problem as you are unlikely to have shortfalls in such a small timescale.”

Paleo (Caveman)

The theory Our “hunter-gatherer” digestive system has never adapted to the introduction of farmed food 9,000 years ago – cut out grains and dairy-based foods and you will effortlessly achieve a lean, hunter-gatherer physique and get rid of niggling health issues such as aching joints and skin problems.

What you eat You base your meals on lean protein, such as chicken, lean red meat, fish or eggs, add lots of non-starchy vegetables (everything but potatoes), and finish off with fruit. Not a cheap option, as you’re encouraged to go for organic, free-range meat where possible. Not surprisingly, processed meats, salty and sugary foods are also verboten, but so are a whole list of “healthy” foods, including anything wheat or grain based (all types of bread and pasta, brown rice, bulgar wheat, couscous and quinoa), pulses (peas and all types of beans), and starchy vegetables. Milk and alcohol are also off-limits. If you stick to it, you should lose around 2lbs a week.

Expert’s verdict “If you can manage to avoid alcohol, it is a fairly good diet,” Wills says. “My only gripe is that you’re not allowed legumes – pulses such as lentils and chickpeas which are full of nutrients and low in fat.”

More info The Paleo Answer by Dr Loren Cordain (£8.99, amazon.co.uk)

Dukan

The theory This low-carb diet is enduringly popular, probably because of the rapid initial weight loss that most people experience on it (losing a stone in the first month isn’t uncommon). There are four phases: Attack – between one to ten days of nothing but lean protein, plus a daily tablespoon of oatbran. Then comes Cruise, alternating days of protein-only with protein plus non-starchy veg, followed by Consolidation, in which you reintroduce foods such as fruit, bread and cheese and are allowed two “celebratory” meals a week that include your favourite foods and alcohol. The final phase allows you to eat whatever you want except on Thursdays, which is a protein-only day.

What you eat Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and grilled steak and salad (no chips) are favourites.

Expert’s verdict “Like the Paleo, but lower in carbs because fruit is frowned upon – fruits contain more carbs than vegetables because of their higher sugar content. It should be easy to follow when travelling as the foods you can eat tend to be widely available. The healthiest type of high protein diet keeps saturated fat low, and includes plenty of healthy fats from oily fish, nuts, seeds and avocados.”

More info dukandiet.co.uk

GL

The theory Based on a medical diet designed to lower blood sugar levels in diabetics, this is a high-fibre, lifelong eating plan rich in complex carbs such as wholegrains, pulses and vegetables. The idea is that slow-energy release foods discourage your body from storing fat by reducing insulin release, so all fast-release foods, such as sugary stuff and refined “white” carbs, are out. Good for vegetarians and those who like their food in decent volume.

What you eat Porridge, baked beans on wholegrain toast, grilled salmon steak with roasted veg, hummus and oatcakes.

Expert’s verdict “A good way to eat and lose weight without counting calories, for many people,” Wills says. “But frequent travellers may find it hard to find the favoured low-GL foods such as wholegrains.”

More info The 7-Day GL Diet by Nigel Denby, Tina Michelucci and Deborah Pyner (£9.59, amazon.co.uk)

Diet chef

The theory Pay a weekly fee (from £39) and a week’s worth of calorie-controlled, microwavable meals are delivered to your door (you need to add your own fruit and veg). Other home delivery diets include purepackage.com – a daily delivery (within the M25) that includes fresh foods.

What you eat A typical day’s eating might be treacle and pecan granola, or vanilla and banana porridge, minestrone soup or chicken couscous salad, lasagne or salmon and vegetable curry.

Expert’s verdict “It won’t work on a week you’re travelling unless you stuff all your packaged meals in your suitcase and have a microwave in your hotel room. Also, most diet deliveries ask you to add your own fruit and vegetables, which rather negates the point. But on a home-based week, the advantage is someone else does all the work for you – and with added fruit and vegetables, it’s a nutritionally balanced diet.”

More info dietchef.co.uk

Lighter Life

The theory Depending on how much you want to lose, you replace some or all of your daily meals with Lighter Life food packs, reducing your daily calorie intake to between 500 and 800 calories a day. The idea is that by taking “normal” food out of the equation, you get a break from the psychological issues that are bound up with eating. That leaves you emotional space to get to the bottom of why you overeat, with the help of weekly “team support” group counselling based on cognitive behavioural therapy. If you stick to it, weight loss can be rapid, with people losing over a stone a month.

What you eat Sunrise orange drink, minestrone soup, crispy cranberry and raspberry bar, beef casserole.

Expert’s verdict “Too low in calories, I would have thought, for most busy people and unlikely to fit in with you if you do a lot of entertaining. The 5:2 would be better.”

More info lighterlife.com, lighterlifeformen.com

Mindfulness Diets

The theory The new zeitgeist in weight-loss thinking is that tuning into your natural appetite is the key to staying slim. That means learning how to recognise true hunger from other emotions (such as stress or boredom), and eating slowly without distractions when you do eat. Mindfulness, meditation and self-hypnosis techniques are used to help you retrain your brain.

What you eat Nothing’s banned – but by tuning into your natural appetite, the theory is you gravitate towards healthier foods.

Expert’s verdict “The best diet in the world won’t work if you haven’t got the right mental attitude to actually do it and continue with it, so any programme that helps you to find the motivation, determination and attitude to start and carry on can be very helpful,” Wills says.

More info The Headspace Diet: Ten Days to Finding Your Ideal Weight by Andy Puddicombe (£9.09, amazon.co.uk)

Case Study: Tom Otley tries the 5:2 diet

“For most of the week, I don’t have much control over what I eat. Client lunches, evening canapés, hours spent in airport lounges and hotel breakfast buffets erode any good intentions I may have.

“The 5:2 diet works for me because for five days a week I don’t need to worry, and for the other, non-consecutive days, I simply eat very little, and what I do eat tends to be ‘approved’ – a boiled egg with half a slice of toast and some steamed fish, a few vegetables, and that’s about it. Most trips I take are fewer than five days, and for those that are longer, I simply don’t eat on the travelling day.

“During the day following a fast, I am sometimes very hungry and eat a little more than normal, but increasingly my appetite seems to have reduced, though it comes back if I eat normally. The effect of the diet has been startling. In three months I have lost nearly a stone and a half, mostly in the first six weeks. Since then, weight loss has only been small, which is fine – as a result of a family history of arthritis, I was more attracted by the suggestion of anti-inflammatory benefits. For that, it is too early to tell.”
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