The French way of eating has been a world-wide inspiration: eating smaller portions, more frequently and ever so slowly is how the French enjoy food and stay slim.

And so I introduce what is thought to be the ‘number 2 French diet’, everything you need to know about the Dukan Diet…

The ‘Dukan Diet’ is known all over the world – literature has been translated into nine languages and is sold in over twenty countries. It was developed by Pierre Dukan, the most widely read nutritionist in France today.

Okay so… what we really care about is how this diet works. Here’s the lowdown: the aim of the diet is to use natural slimming foods that counteract poor cultural eating habits that when linked with over-abundance lead to the problem of excess weight and unhealthy lifestyle.

The Dukan Diet is tailor-made to the individual but works in four phases to be carried out successively in order to reach the ideal weight target:

Phase 1 – A brief and headlong ATTACK phase with immediate results. During this phase, the diet is made up of 72 high-protein foods enabling quick weight loss.

Phase 2 – A CRUISE phase leading to the ‘true weight’. During this phase, the diet alternates Pure Protein days (PP phases) and Proteins accompanied with 28 recommended Vegetables (PV phases).

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You’ve decided to cut down on coffee– life is hard! Caffeine is killing your health and your post-30 body is saying “no!” I repeat – life is hard!

Maybe this will make it a little less hard!?

Heard of ‘coffee alternative’ Dandelion Coffee?

Basically it’s tea posing as coffee – it’s a drink made from the root of the dandelion plant which is tastes and looks so much like coffee that is considered a coffee alternative.

The dandelion roots are dried, chopped, and roasted, ground into granules which, when steeped in boiling water, produce dandelion coffee.

Okay – so it’s not precious, caffeinated coffee but is a great coffee alternative! And it comes in different flavours.

There are loads of dandelion coffee brands available for purchase but Green Bean does three variations; dandelion & manuka honey coffee, dandelion & plum coffee and then an original dandelion coffee. CLICK HERE to purchase.

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If organic is how you roll; then Trust William is a site worth visiting.

The brand, traced back as far as 1846, offers a core range of natural health and beauty products based on six key well-established natural ingredients: Aloe Vera, Echinacea, Glucosamine, Manuka Honey, Omega 3 and Tea Tree Oil.

If doing the whole ‘five a day’ thing is a big ask in light of your madly busy days and you are looking for one place to buy organic foods online, Trust William has a fab range of organic juices that make consuming essential nutrient-filled fruit and veg as easy as pie.

There is also a range of super juices, which function as liquid food supplements.

Caffeine free coffee, organic dark chocolate (including flavours: pink pepper, almond, cherry and blackcurrant) and manuka honey offer healthier alternative to the delicious decadences that we simply cannot do without.

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With seemingly every other health article telling us to drink more fluids, it’s easy to forget that some drinks can harbour almost as many hidden calories as a tasty snack!

But drinks are among the worst culprits when it comes to scuppering the diet plans and piling on the pounds, so it’s important to make smart choices with your fluid intake and avoid sending your calorie intake through the roof for no good reason.

Here are my top tips for smart drink choices:

* Full-sugar fizzy drinks are an absolute no-no. Even if you think you don’t like the diet versions, give them a try for a couple of weeks, because once you have weaned yourself of the sticky versions, you might find – like me – that the diet version becomes the only one you want to drink.

* Sugar in tea and coffee is a personal preference, and while I gradually reduced mine to zero and have stayed that way for many years now, I understand that some people just can’t drink them without.

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In our last blog post on Healthy Lifestyle Tips, we mentioned three rules you need to follow. These smart choices will bring a healthier lifestyle. Here is a breakdown of rule #1: Make smart choices every time you eat,  five top tips on healthy eating:

1. Choose a smart breakfast. Firstly, make sure you do eat breakfast to set your metabolism going for the day, and secondly, make it a good one. Eggs are a great way to start the day, as they are high in protein, which fills you up without bloating and avoids the highs and lows of blood sugar that can be caused by refined carbs such as white bread and sugary cereals.

Team your eggs with a slice of wholewheat or rye toast, or if you are short on time, opt instead for muesli or a low-sugar wholegrain cereal with semi-skimmed organic milk.

2. Switch white bread, rice and pasta for wholewheat options. They are more complex carbohydrates, which means the energy is released more slowly over time. They also represent one of your recommended three daily portions of wholegrains, while the white versions don’t.

3. Be mindful of your snacking. Busy mums are often the worst culprits because it is so easy to pop a few of the kids’ snacks or a few bites of their tea in your mouth almost without noticing – I speak from experience here!

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