Why tidying your kitchen will help you polish off the pounds!

Why tidying your kitchen will help you polish off the pounds! Losing just 4lbs of excess weight can transform your health — and our 12 ingenious tweaks will help make it so much easier

Over-indulged this festive season? Carrying a few extra pounds? Feeling sluggish and unfit? Fear not, help is just around the corner.

To kickstart 2021 in the healthiest way, this Saturday the Daily Mail is launching a 30-day Health Kick — a month of simple and practical steps to help you take control of your health.

We are kicking off with Dr Michael Mosley’s tips on how to transform your health — and stick to it — and a brilliant 30-day wellness journal, a day-by-day diary to record your progress and to give you the structure you need to stay on track. The journal is packed with tips and challenges to motivate you.

A cluttered kitchen could be causing you to overeat — so spruce it up, suggests research from Cornell University in the U.S. One theory is a cluttered and confusing environment makes us anxious and prone to overeating

Plus, every week for the next month we will be publishing exclusive pullouts written by leading experts to help you tackle excess weight, strengthen your defences against infections such as Covid-19, and ward off dementia.

There will also be a daily exercise in the paper with fitness expert Joanna Hall, plus a 15-minute free exercise video as part of a beginner’s exercise programme to get you fit over the month. And, at the end of the month, we’ll be publishing your indispensable guide to getting the best NHS treatment for you.

One of the simplest ways to start this health kick is by changing your diet. It needn’t involve wild overhauls or crash diets — a sensible and sustainable way to lose weight is no more than 1lb to 2lb a week, research suggests.

The best part? This is achievable by making a tiny change to your daily calorie intake. Some studies show a benefit to our health in as little as a month or two.

In the latest study, led by the University of East Anglia, researchers found that losing just 2kg to 3kg — less than half a stone — can almost halve the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

This potentially life-limiting condition occurs when the body either resists the effects of insulin, a hormone that regulates the movement of sugar into our cells, or doesn’t produce enough to maintain normal blood sugar levels. Exactly why this happens is unknown, but being overweight and inactive raise the risk significantly.

Untreated, type 2 diabetes can lead to nerve damage, organ failure and increase the risk of heart attack and premature death.

The latest report, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, involved more than 1,028 people with pre-diabetes (meaning they had high blood sugar levels that put them at high risk of full-blown type 2).

It found that when people made small lifestyle changes that led to modest weight loss and increased physical activity, they were able to significantly reduce their chances of developing type 2.

Losing 2kg (4.4lb) cut the risk of type 2 by 40 per cent, and losing 3kg — just under half a stone — cut the risk by 47 per cent. Significantly, these small lifestyle changes were easy to sustain and people didn’t regain the weight lost after two years.

This is especially important news as there are around eight million people with prediabetes in the UK and 4.5 million with type 2.

‘If you have been diagnosed with prediabetes, this approach offers a way to take a different direction — to get off the path to type 2 diabetes and on to the road to a healthier future,’ says Professor Colin Greaves, a health psychologist at the University of Birmingham, who was part of the new study.

And it’s not just type 2: obesity has been linked to many other conditions — from back pain to high blood pressure, arthritis and sleep apnoea (where the tissues in the throat collapse as you sleep, so you temporarily stop breathing, which is linked to a higher risk of stroke and heart attack).

Studies have suggested losing just a little excess weight can help alleviate symptoms of these conditions and improve quality of life.

Here, with the help of experts, we reveal 12 science-backed tiny tweaks you can make each day, which will help you lose the all-important 2kg in a month — almost without noticing — and transform your health outlook for ever.

1. Clear up clutter in the kitchen

Monthly weight loss: 2.3kg

A cluttered kitchen could be causing you to overeat — so spruce it up, suggests research from Cornell University in the U.S.

One theory is a cluttered and confusing environment makes us anxious and prone to overeating.

‘Being in a chaotic environment and feeling out of control is bad for diets,’ says Lenny Vartanian, a professor of psychology who led the 2016 study, published in the journal Environment and Behavior.

‘It seems to lead people to think, ‘everything else is out of control, so why shouldn’t I be?’

The researchers split around 100 women between a clean kitchen and a cluttered one (for example, with disorganised tables, dishevelled piles of paper and dishes scattered around) for ten minutes while carrying out writing tasks — they were offered cookies, carrots and crackers to snack on.

Being in a chaotic environment and feeling out of control is bad for diets,’ says Lenny Vartanian, a professor of psychology who led the 2016 study, published in the journal Environment and Behavior

Results revealed women in the chaotic kitchen consumed twice as many cookies and 65 more calories than those in the tidy one.

Spread that over a day — the kitchen is often one of the most used rooms in the house — and you could be hoovering up an additional 650 daily calories or 4,550 extra calories a week.

Based on these sums, simply cleaning up the kitchen could help you shed around 5lb in a month.

2. Go to work on an egg- or three!

Monthly weight loss: 1.4kg

Many studies have indicated the benefits of an egg-based breakfast.

A classic 2010 experiment at the University of Connecticut showed that men who ate a breakfast containing three scrambled eggs consumed 400 fewer calories in the following 24 hours than those who had eaten a bagel for breakfast (which had the same number of calories).

The high protein content in eggs is thought to satisfy hunger better than other foods and improve satiety, which may help reduce food intake later in the day.

Further studies also suggested that an eggy breakfast is associated with lower levels of ghrelin, the ‘hunger hormone’, for the rest of the day, compared with porridge, they wrote in the journal Nutrients in 2017.

This breakfast swap could help you cut 2,800 calories a week, and lose 3 lb 3 oz in a month.

The high protein content in eggs is thought to satisfy hunger better than other foods and improve satiety, which may help reduce food intake later in the day [File photo]

3. Switch to an ‘open’ sandwich

Monthly weight loss: 0.4kg

The most effective way to slim down your sandwich is to make it an open one, discarding one of the slices altogether, says Carrie Ruxton, a dietitian based in Fife.

A slice of Hovis soft thick white bread is 117 calories, so using one slice instead of two will strip the same amount from your lunch —adding up to a loss of just under 3,500 calories — and just under 1lb — in a month.

And a thinner slice is better still; switching to Hovis medium white would add up to 93 calories instead of 117.

The most effective way to slim down your sandwich is to make it an open one, discarding one of the slices altogether, says Carrie Ruxton, a dietitian based in Fife [File photo]

4. Snack on prunes to stay full

Monthly weight loss: 0.6kg

We’re often warned off dried fruit when it comes to weight loss, due to its relatively high sugar content, but a University of Liverpool study in 2014 showed prunes — dried plums — can in fact help people lose weight.

Men were asked to eat 170g prunes (around 15 prunes), and women 140g (a dozen or so) daily — both groups lost around 2kg (4lb) of weight and an inch off their waistlines after three months. The effect is thought to be down to the high fibre content in prunes, which is satiating.

5. Put your phone away at the table

Monthly weight loss: 1kg

It’s bad manners to bring your phone to the table — and it’s also bad for your diet.

Eating while using your phone or reading a text message increased calorie consumption by around 15 per cent compared to when eating without distraction, showed a study last year, reported the journal Physiology and Behavior.

The researchers said distractions may prevent the brain registering how much has been consumed. They found other distractions, such as reading a magazine, had a similar effect on calorie consumption.

This adds up to 300 calories a day or 2,100 in a week. Stow your phone at breakfast, lunch and dinner for a month to lose around 2lb 6oz in that time.

You’re likely to eat less if you can hear what you’re eating because it’s a sensory cue that helps you judge how much you’ve had, say U.S. scientists

6. ‘Listen’ to your food

Monthly weight loss 3.1kg

You’re likely to eat less if you can hear what you’re eating because it’s a sensory cue that helps you judge how much you’ve had, say U.S. scientists.

In a 2016 study, published in the journal Food Quality and Preference, participants heard sound at varying volumes while they ate crunchy snacks.

The group who listened to the loudest noise, which masked chewing, ate 45 per cent more than those listening to quiet sounds who could still ‘hear’ it.

Turning the volume down could theoretically cut 900 calories from your daily diet — a potential loss of more than 7lb, or half a stone, in a month.

7. Cut the size of your coffee

Monthly weight loss: 0.5kg

The traditional advice might be to start taking your coffee black, but you can enjoy exactly the same drink while cutting calories — just order a smaller size, says Carrie Ruxton.

For example, switch from a large (455ml) full-fat milk latte from Costa to a small (310ml) one, and you could save 88 calories a day, 616 in a week — shedding roughly 3/4lb in a month.

Make it small and semi-skimmed and you’d save 138 calories a day and are on track to losing 1lb 2oz in a month.

The traditional advice might be to start taking your coffee black, but you can enjoy exactly the same drink while cutting calories — just order a smaller size, says Carrie Ruxton [File photo]

8. Try yoghurt

Monthly weight loss: 0.34kg

When offered chocolate, crackers or yoghurt (all with the same calorie content), it is yoghurt that helps you feel the fullest and avoid overeating later in the day, according to a 2014 study by the University of Missouri.

It’s thought the high-protein content helped participants feel less hungry throughout the afternoon, delaying the time at which they chose to eat dinner and meaning they ate 100 fewer calories than the other groups.

Or, if yoghurt is not to your taste, choose a similar high- protein afternoon snack — a study earlier this year in the Journal of Nutrition found a 240-calorie afternoon snack of hummus and pretzels also increased satiety and resulted in less indulgence at dessert when compared with low-protein bars with the same calories.

These snacks will help you trim 700 calories a week, equivalent to around 3/4lb over a month.

9. Cook supper at home most days

Monthly weight loss: 0.5kg

Those who cook their own meals six or seven nights a week consume around 150 fewer calories daily compared to those who eat out or dine on ready meals, according to a study of 9,000 people by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the U.S.

The study, published in the journal Public Health Nutrition in 2014, also found those who cooked at home consumed less fat and sugar overall, probably because they were aware of how much they were adding.

Just making this tiny change at lunch or dinner could save you 1,050 calories a week — a potential loss of 1lb 4.8oz in a month.

10. Takeaway night? Choose it wisely

Monthly weight loss: 0.2kg

A typical takeaway curry can add a huge 900 to 1,000 calories into your weekly diet. But simple swaps can help you save calories, says Carrie Ruxton.

For example, as lamb is a fattier meat, swapping a lamb rogan josh for a prawn masala will instantly save you 100 calories.

Then opt for plain rice rather than pilau, and dump the naan bread in favour of a lower-fat chapati (a flatbread made with wholewheat flour and water) — and you’ve saved a total of 500 calories for the meal.

Based on a weekly curry fest, that’s more than ½lb (9oz) lost in a month while still indulging.

11. Water should be your new drink of choice

Monthly weight loss: 0.7kg

It’s easy to mistake thirst for hunger, as the messages are interpreted in the same region of the brain.

People who drank just three extra glasses of water a day cut their daily intake by 205 calories, according to a 2016 study in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics.

The researchers, from the University of Illinois in the U.S., said that this is because ‘water helps increase feelings of satiety, which can help avoid overeating, as well as replacing high-calorie beverages that have added sugar’.

They suggested upping your water intake by drinking a glass when you wake up in the morning, after going to the bathroom, and with every meal.

This could save you 1,435 calories a week — a loss of 1lb 10oz in a month.

12. Make sure you are getting enough sleep

Monthly weight loss: 1.1kg

Not only does getting less shut-eye slow your metabolic rate, meaning you burn fewer calories, but you’ll also eat more to compensate for your tiredness.

A 2011 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that participants who slept for four hours took in around 300 additional calories the following day compared to when they slept for seven to nine hours.

Some studies have suggested that short sleep duration may alter pathways in the brain that regulate food choices.

A good night’s sleep every night could be equivalent to 2lb 6oz weight loss over a month — and have a whole host of other health benefits, from reducing stress and improving heart health to boosting mood and concentration, too.

Not only does getting less shut-eye slow your metabolic rate, meaning you burn fewer calories, but you’ll also eat more to compensate for your tiredness [File photo]

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