Weight

slimming world or weight  watchers would be good if you could join them.  Look out for their recipies on line.  Try changing your mayonaise to extra light mayonaise at that will reduce your calaries.  Cut out pizza and pies as they are the highest in calaries too.  Try and walk everywhere that you can than get a bus etc.  Look out for fat free items rather than your normal things you buy.  I think if you read the back of packets if its less than 5% fat content that will help too.  keep your crunchy carrot sticks close by for snacking and try not to overindulge (easier said than done)  Maybe try and keep a food diary so you can see what you are eating? And try drinking water (no fizzy drinks)  Good Luck x 

Losing weight requires a desire first and foremost, when you are ready . Then start by cutting out non home made foods, processed food are not good for you and continuing on this eating pattern will. Store up health problems for later life.  Make your own curries and pizza with good natural ingredients. Try introducing more veg by making spicy soups , with liquidized ones you won't be able to identify them. Gradually cut down flour which currently figures highly in your diet.  

Try things you think you don't like from time to time, we often convince ourselves we don't like things but if the dislike stems from childhood when our taste buds are under developed, sometimes  if food is well cooked and presented it can come as a surprise that we can actually grow to like those foods! Be open minded and try and change gradually. Maybe a diet like slimming world which is not too harsh but with attention to cooking methods, might suit you. You have to cut down that mayo habit, gradually is the best, first light version then mix with increasing amounts of natural yoghurt. Add your own flavours go for tasty dips which can then become all yoghurt

First Leah I would like to acknowledge you for stepping up your game and seeing the potential you have to improve your health.  It is great that you are only 17 years young and reaching out to make big changes in your life.  I would like to give you as much help/support/information that I can so please feel free to ask me any questions following on from my reply.

There are many paths you can go on to reach the health goals you are seeking but finding the one that is right for you is important.  In your discussion you haven't mentioned anything about what fruit you eat.  Do you eat any?  What fruits do you like/dislike?  Fruits are a great way to provide your body with natural energy (particularly bananas and mangoes).  Eating them BEFORE a meal will help your body to have that full and satisfied feeling quicker, therefore possibly resulting in you eating less processed foods (which contain addictive ingredients).

From your message it sounds like you have a BIG addiction to mayonnaise, would you say this is some sort of emotional attachment?  A lot of eating habits can be linked with emotional psychology - e.g. a food reminds us of a person, place or situation, or it can comfort us when we feel down, or it gives us something to do when we are bored, distract us from pain, used as a reward.  Have a go at this quick exercise for mayonnaise which I call the 'Attitude Amplifier':  

1. Rate your urge (the pleasure you feel you'll get if you eat mayonaise) - so, on a scale of 0-10 scale, rate the perceived urge (10 is pleasure - I can't help myself, 0 is none).

2. Find out why the urge is high - tell yourself everything about it: what does it look like? What does it feel like? What does it taste like? What are you eating the mayonnaise with?  What is it about the mayo that make you feel you can't help yourself?  What makes you feel you have to eat this right now?

3. Lower your urge to neutral - acknowledge the level of urge you are at.  What would it take to move that urge to a 5?  What would you have to perceive about mayo, or what would the mayo have to be like, to bring it to a 5?  What would the mayo have to be like in order to move that urge to a zero (where you could take it or leave it)?

4. Lower your urge to negative numbers - how are you feeling? Are you ready to take this further?  On a zero to negative 10, with 0 being totally neutral and negative 10 being "I'll be sick if I forced myself to eat that", describe the mayo that would put you at a level negative 10 in terms of your urge to avoid that mayo.  Describe a mayo you'd hate to eat.  Picture it sitting in the cupboard/fridge for days/weeks/months, there's mold on the top when you open the jar, you can smell it going rancid, this is actually a moldy jar of mayo.

I will leave that idea with you for now, but please don't hesitate to contact me.

Have an awesome day and stay positive!

Rebecca