Kilmarnock Academy - Lorna Willock

Eating Your Way To Good Health - by Lorna Willock

FOOD & DIET EXPERT, LORNA , CONTRIBUTES TO KA WEB

Nutritional expert and former pupil, Lorna Willock, has agreed to contribute to her old school's website. So how did this come about? Simple - we asked her. We already have links pages for Food & Diet as well as Health & Fitness but we don't really have much on-site content. Lorna has agreed to put that right. Her first contribution is a piece on Weight Loss and it appears below.
Lorna is now consulting in Kilmarnock for part of the week. If you have any questions you can e-mail lorna@foods4life.co.uk or discuss things with her in confidence on 01644 470218.

WEIGHT LOSS

I have been working with clients, helping them to lose weight, for many years now and would like to help banish a few myths around the topic of losing weight.
It is not just the calories consumed/exercise expenditure that is the main issue – if this were solely the case then a lot more people would find it easier to lose weight!

It is which foods our calories come from that is the important issue – our bodies are always doing their best to look after us and we should never forget that. If we eat chemicals they will be laid down (preserved) in fat to protect our important organs e.g. liver, heart.

We need to be eating plenty of ‘fat burning’ foods – these are the foods that speed up our metabolism. Also we need to supply our bodies with all the important nutrients to balance blood sugar, help glucose enter our cells, feed our thyroid gland – the essential endocrine gland for metabolism, etc.

So really this is a food quality issue and we all have different needs and biochemistry. One lady (see below) came to see me as she was quite overweight. We discovered that wheat was a problem food for her and that she was low in iodine – essential for metabolism. She made healthy changes to her diet and stopped craving sweet foods. She also started walking 5 miles a day to where she worked and home again (quite a considerable task). Some months later she felt much better - you can see the results for yourself below. .

Everyone has a different outlook and is prepared to go about their weight loss in a way that suits them. Where I feel some of the more common slimming plans go wrong is that they are telling people what to eat and when they go back to their old bad habits the weight often goes straight back on! We need to change bad habits and correct the vitamins, minerals, fluids, and do our best to speed up metabolism.

Supermarkets do not help – they are in business to sell us foods so it is good business for them to have us eat more – they are not responsible for NHS bills! Most of the buy one/get one free is for total junk foods. On a recent trip round my local supermarket you could get 24 bags of crisps and 24 free - and all for one pound! Should we be putting 48 bags of crisps into the cupboard? Also on special were biscuits, diet and ‘full-fat’ coke and a few other low nutrition products. Rarely do I see lean cuts of meat or fish on such an offer. Our bodies are looking for adequate nutrition so if we don’t supply that in quantities of nutritious, health providing foods we may stay hungry. This ‘hunger’ may keep us eating and our body may just end up depressed. It takes a strong person not to resist a bargain – and supermarkets know we ladies love a bargain! However we are bargaining with our health and over time this is a dangerous game

Another case study was a charming young man who had been eating too few fruits and vegetables. He quickly learned how to add these to his daily diet and now feels so much better. His skin and energy are extremely improved and now, three stone lighter, his target weight is fairly close. This was done by small steady changes throughout a period of months which suited him and his lifestyle.

Many people have a condition called Syndrome X where as a result of elevated levels of insulin they cannot burn fat – this does not mean that they are diabetics. This situation is created by the types of foods eaten and it is not just about the calories. In cases like this the person needs to consume particular foods in order to lose weight. Once the weight is lost their body metabolism may return to normal and they may no longer need to worry about putting on weight.

Faddy diets are out there in abundance but though good for shifting a few pounds before a special date they will do nothing to optimise health and are certainly not sustainable. Eating vast quantities of cabbage soup or boiled eggs doesn’t sound like a very good idea to me!

Hopefully you will be getting the message that it is not a one diet fits all situation. We are all unique and therefore need a more unique plan that is tailored to fit individuals’ life styles, food preferences, deficiencies, metabolic types, etc.

I currently carry out 2 different types of weight loss plan. The first is giving general advice for weight loss to suit life style and food preferences. The second is my full MOT which looks at all aspects of health as well as weight loss and covers nutritional deficiencies and a few possible food intolerances. See the following link for prices
http://www.foods4life.co.uk/clinics.php

Also for a few diet tips look at my website www.foods4life.co.uk and download the FREE 10 diet tips on the following link http://www.foods4life.co.uk/ebooks.php - that will get you started!
Another word of advice never begin a new eating plan on a Monday – this is usually the start of the working week and as such the mind and body are already taking on a lot of changes from, hopefully a fun-filled weekend. Why create any extra stress – by Wednesday, with everything running smoothly and under control you will be energised and looking forward to making simple changes towards creating a healthier life plan.

LORNA.S FIRST FIRST APPEARANCE ON KA WEB

Lorna first came to the attention of KA Web in May 2010 when the feature below appeared on the site.

LOCAL GIRL LORNA BACK WORKING IN KILLIE

With Scotland's poor reputation for diet-related health problems, it is hardly surprising that one of the most important initiatives in education over the last ten years has been the drive to encourage pupils to adopt a healthy diet. At Kilmarnock Academy this has resulted in Healthy Options being added to the menu on offer in the school's Metro cafeteria, the introduction of Health Days, increased awareness of the adverse health effects of obesity, Free Fruit days and, of course, the introduction of Int.2 Cake Decorating (not so sure about that last one...).

Anyway, it is good to know that for expert and individual advice on the subject of our complex nutritional needs, we can turn to former K.A. pupil, Lorna Willock. Lorna is normally based in Castle Douglas and Dumfries but she is now back in Kilmarnock for part of the week and available for consultation.

Over a number of years, Lorna has helped many people achieve a healthier and more active lifestyle through diet and, during that time, she has extended her expertise and experience to cover such specialised areas as Allergy and Environmental Therapy, Phytotherapy and Naturopathic Nutritional Techniques. Lorna aims to improve the health of as many people as possible through workshops, giving lectures and also through individual consultations. In addition, Lorna can do home visits, telephone consultations, cookery demonstrations and can even be your Supermarket Buddy - giving you healthy tips on shopping trips. To find out how Lorna can help you to eat your way to good health, visit her website at foods4life.co.uk. (by clicking here).